Archive for beef

I’ve been meaning to get back to Yamakase for forever (2 years) and finally got around to booking the whole place again (which is really the only way to go!). The Foodie Club easily jammed in here. Not that 11 seats are that much to fill for such a great place.

This is the kitchen. Well it’s also half the room.

Yamakase is the brainchild of chef Kiyoshiro Yamamoto and video game executive Stan Liu. Here Yama-san scoops out some Japanese Uni. The restaurant is Omakase only, serving up a single seating of epic creative Japanese Kaiseki/sushi.
Those little white squiggles are some kind of seasonal baby fish. Accompanied by Hokkaido uni, some kind of homemade tofu, green onions, and I don’t know what else. This is typical of the Yama style, a mixture of richness and various sea-born textures. Very very umami.
This is the pescatarian (no shell fish version) with a special kelp.Baby eels. Seasonal baby eels with caviar and a kind of slightly spicy mayo sauce. One baby sea creature not being enough, we have the eels, which are almost like mung bean noodles in consistency. This was bowl licking good.Sea bass. Instead of the eels.Uni and baby fish. The fish are wrapped in shiso and drizzled with a puree of avocado or asparagus or something like that. Delicious.Abalone. The softest abalone I think I’ve ever had.
Perhaps Amberjack. Another replacement for the abalone.Sashimi. This delicate fish was with a slightly tangy sauce. Amazing again.Japanese scallop. With a light lemony sauce. Absolutely amazing.
A whitefish with a similar sauce.Bluefin tuna, caviar, pine nuts. Some of the best chunks of tuna I’ve had.Bonito. Again in a lovely vinegar based sauce. The fish was melt in your mouth.Various marinated seafood. Scallop, two kinds of shrimp, and a pickled baby peach.
A version with no shellfish.Oyster spoon. Kushi Oyster, quail egg, uni, caviar. This single taste shot is an amazing combination of umami flavors.
The chef chunks up some foie gras.Eggplant and Foie. Foie gras, caviar, Japanese eggplant.Toro rules. Chopped toro on eggplant.Floored. Chopped toro, crab guts and meat, quail egg, and truffle cheese. Yeah, truffle cheese. This dish was absolutely out of this world. Just crazy rich and delicious.
Various spoons of toro, cheese, and quail egg.
This hairy crab from Hokkaido was still alive when we arrived.
Yama sets to work on them after steaming.
Served up steamed, simple, but delicious.Red mullet or snapper cooked up in foil with mushrooms. The fungus turned into a lovely broth.Ultimate bowl. This foie gras based seafood broth was topped with truffles and filled with yummy seafood bits. Absolutely stunning. So rich. So good.
A more classic fish-based dashi soup.Toro “Sandwich”. A slab of frozen toro on top of uni on top of some toast. Wow.
Yama flames up some beef.
Yama slices the beef. True Kobe wagyu.Wagyu with truffles. Simply cooked, with a bit of a soy based sauce. Wow.Toro with truffles and sea salt. Wow. This was just amazing. Very salty though.Blue fin tuna sushi. Mouth watering.Amberjack. Amazing.Sea bass. To die for.Chu toro. Lethal.O toro. Even better.O toro with salt. Wow, wow wow. These might have been rich, but they were some of the best nigiri I’ve had in a long long time. Chef Yama spent a lot of time cutting and probably threw away 2/3 of the fish.
A dessert sorbet. Baby Japanese peach (in season) with yuzu and mint. Very light and refreshing.

This was one of my best meals in a long time — really quite excellent — and regular readers know I have more than my share of great meals. A really great format. The restaurant is only 11 seats. This made for a really fun time. We were there from 7 to midnight too. A total blow out.

Oh, and that toro cheese dish and foie gras “stew” were some of the best dishes I’ve had in forever.

The K-town Korean BBQ places have been growing increasingly high end of late. I recently tried out Madang 621 and now my Hedonist gang has descended on the new Gwang Yang.

Located in one of these high-rise plazas across the street from the every popular Boiling Crab. The sign claims someone thinks it’s the best restaurant in Seoul.

The interior is sleek, with a whole lot of glass caged private rooms. We took two! Sort of. The Hedonists had one an loosely associated non-wine foodie group had another.

The menu.

NV Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin Champagne Brut. IWC 90. Light gold. Musky orchard fruits and dried fig on the mineral-accented nose. Fleshy and broad on the palate, offering smoky pear and nectarine flavors and a hint of honey. Finishes on a gently spicy note, with very good cling and a touch of bitter lemon pith.

No Korean place could look at itself in the mirror without banchan, the little (often) pickled sides placed on the table and infinity refilled. Gwang Yang has only four, all classic.

agavin: Korean food can be a hard wine match and I wanted some white to start. This mildly aged Gruner hit the spot. It’s complex and almost herby/spicy fruit allows it to handle the pervasive Korean red chili.

Korean salad.

2011 Kistler Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast. 92 points. The wine has a beautiful garnet color, light in the glass with almost no legs. The nose was light with hints of fruit and minerals. A light fruity taste that is tart and not sweet and a smooth texture. The finish is long and the wine really improved with air and I probably opened this years to soon. A very nice Pinot.

agavin: there was a tiny touch of “funny” to our bottle, may have blown off later.

A spicy bean and seaweed salad. Quite nice.

2012 Seven of Hearts Pinot Noir Curmudgeon Cuvée Armstrong Vineyard. IWC 92. Dark red. Delicate, focused aromas of red berries, potpourri and Asian spices, with a bright mineral nuance adding lift. Fresh and lively on the palate, offering tangy raspberry and strawberry flavors that show very good energy, lift and cut. A fresh, elegant, weightless pinot that finishes with very good energy and drive and silky tannins. This racy, balanced wine puts on weight with air but maintains a sense of elegance and restraint.

Gwang Yang Bulgogi. Gangnam Style. Do your best horse trot dance. This is the famous marinated beef without bones.

It’s just grilled up straight in a big pile.

Some accompaniments. Garlic, pepper, and a fermented miso bean paste that I really loved — not too different than natto.

2008 Rhys Alesia Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast. IWC 91. Vivid red. Strawberry, raspberry and spicecake on the nose, with a sexy sandalwood quality. In a distinctly vibrant style, with the sexy spice and red berry qualities following through in the mouth. Sappy and fine-grained wine, finishing on a suave note of candied flowers. This will be the last vintage for this wine.

American Kobe Yukhwoe. Korean style beef tartar. Green stuff. With both heat and a bit of sweetness and an intense texture invoking the slimy with a bit of crunch. Really wonderful.

1980 Château Trotanoy. 92 points. Starts off a bit strange and quite unpleasant with a big cheesy whiff and some strong volatility on the nose. A big shake in the decanter and it improves immeasurably. There are notes of black olive, leather and there’s a pleasant floral perfume. In the mouth it is lightly creamy and there is cassis fruit sweetness. Tannins are chewy on the finish and it is fresh and vibrant.

agavin: ours was a little stirred up and cloudy, but was surprisingly decent for such a shitty old vintage.

Gwang Yang Bulgogi. LA Style. More marinated and sweeter than the Gangnam style. We all liked this better. You eat it cooked on the grill.

2000 Monbousquet. Parker 93. Although still youthful, I do not think the 2000 Monbousquet will develop much more complexity. It is a seductive, rich, generously endowed effort revealing plenty of spice box, herb, black currant, kirsch, espresso, and toasty oak characteristics in a decidedly modern, but opulent, fleshy style. Enjoy this endearing, long, velvety-textured St.-Emilion over the next decade.

agavin: great wine, although more like a big Cal Cab than a Bord, and very young. Tons of round fruit though.

Prime YangNyeom-Galbi. Marinated Prime Beef Short Ribs.

Grilled up as usual. When cooked, these were tender, fatty, free of bone, and absolutely scrumptious. Clearly my favorite. Others were split between liking these and the LA Style Bulgogi best.

From my cellar: 1996 Paul Jaboulet Aine Hermitage la Chapelle. Parker 92. The 1996 Hermitage La Chapelle is immensely impressive. The acidity is high. The color is black/purple, and the wine is extremely concentrated, but unevolved and impossible to penetrate. It could turn out like the 1983 and never develop as well as its early promise suggests. Nevertheless, it is a massive effort with extraordinary concentration, but the high acidity requires a minimum of 10 years of cellaring.

agavin: Most of us thought this the WOTN. Just a really nice solid mature (but not old) Syrah. Tons of ripe fruit.

2009 Chapoutier Hermitage la Sizeranne. Parker 90-94. For starters, there are 1,627 cases of the 2009 Ermitage Monier de la Sizeranne. Lots of peppery, meaty notes are found in this dense purple-colored 2009 along with sweet tannin, a full-bodied, layered mouthfeel and outstanding purity. Three to five years of cellaring will be beneficial, and the wine should keep for two decades.

Eundaeku Jeongsik. Grilled black cod with spices and potatoes. Really good stuff. The cod was super flavorful and tender.

A kind of sweet roasted cold tea. Kinda yummy actually.

Here is about a third of our private room.

Overall, Gwang Yang did serve up some of the best K-BBQ I’ve had — and we had a LOT of food. It wasn’t cheap though, as the Korean places down the food chain are often very reasonable. Although it should be noted that while our table was $110 a head all in, the non-wine group in the next room over hit only $50-60. Of course they didn’t waddle out like we did.

And, lacking dessert, we waddled across the street to this interesting dessert stand.

The options basically involve a small set of ingredients, mostly the “True Milk Ice Cream.” As far as I can tell, it’s not cream at all, but ice milk, ice cream’s less creamy cousin.

I haven’t actually been out to dedicated Korean BBQ in Korea town for quite a long time, at least not in the five years I’ve been photoing my food. So when it popped up as a dinner suggestion I consulted the recommendations of my ultra foodie (and Korean) friend Liz Lee.

Which brought us to Madang 621, located in the heart of K-Town. This elaborate mall (and the restaurant) has an elegant and extensive buildout.

agavin: Korean food can be a hard wine match and I wanted some white to start. This mildly aged Gruner hit the spot. It’s complex and almost herby/spicy fruit allows it to handle the pervasive Korean red chili.

PA JUN

파전[PA JUN] Pancake w/scallion choice of vegetarian, Seafood or kimchi. This one is vegetable. Like a thick “meatier” version of a traditional Chinese scallion pancake. Served with a soy based dipping sauce.

No Korean place could look at itself in the mirror without banchan, the little (often) pickled sides placed on the table and infinity refilled.

Kimchi. The classic.

Dried spicy crispy shrimp. One of my two favorites. This was quite chewy and crispy, with a little heat and a dried shrimp vibe that isn’t for lightweights.

Seasoned Korean Spinach.

Potato salad. Sweet with raisons and some other bits. Actually pretty good.

Spicy vegetable. A kind of kimchi I guess, probably daikon? I liked this better than the regular one because of its chewy/crunchy texture.

Broccoli.

Mung Bean Sprouts.

Spicy squid. This was one of my favorites. It was like chewy spicy squid spaghetti.

2007 Xavier Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Anonyme. Parker 96. Except for Henri Bonneau’s 2007 Reserve des Celestins (which is still in barrel), the last 2007 Chateauneuf du Pape to be released will be Xavier Vignon’s Anonyme. This sensational wine spent three years in a combination of demi-muids and small oak. It boasts an inky/purple color along with a sweet nose of underbrush, garrigue, licorice, blackberries and black currants. Full, thick, unctuously textured and even flamboyant, this stunning 2007 should drink well for another 15-20 years.

agavin: very young and still in that grapey stage, there are no flaws I could detect in this wine. Very smooth with a lovely finish. A little too much oak still, but really a fabulous CNDP.

We ordered this big array of meats and seafood for three people. Actually we had four, but it worked out fine. All of this stuff is cooked up on the BBQ at your table.

There are two types of sauce. The same two are pictured here, but they are of a similar color and both fairly mild and oily. I would have preferred a bit of the sweet soy stuff they have at Yakaniku places.

KOBE KOT DESUNG SIM

고베 꽃등심[KOBE KOT DESUNG SIM] Sliced fresh kobe beef rib eye.

A very rich (aka fatty) cut of wagyu rib eye. Cooked down to fun little morsels of beef and fat.

MADANG GAL BI

마당갈비 [MADANG GAL BI] Marinated prime beef short rib with bone.

I probably like the Gal Bi slightly better, and that is often one of my favorit KBBQ cuts. It’s meatier I guess. Certainly well marbled.

The scallops were also awesome, particularly when lightly seared.

Korean salad. I always find the Korean dressing a little oily.

GYE RAN JJIM

계란찜[GYE RAN JJIM] Steamed soft egg tofu

With fish roe and scallions. I usually love steamed egg dishes and this was no exception with a nice light fluffy texture.

One of those nice mild soups. The broth was very tasty and the stuff too, particularly the dumplings.

Overall, Madang served up a really nice meal and it was a fun experience. It’s a lovely setting. The food was of very high quality with first class meats and ingredients. The service was very friendly but a bit “sluggish,” particularly in the end where it must have been 45-60 minutes to get the check. I liked all the sides and extras also. My one comment is that I like the Yakaniku dipping sauce (ala Manpuku or Totoraku) better. It’s just less oily with more flavor.

Next door at Boba-time we grabbed some “dessert” with the Asian teenagers.

Cookies and Cream with boba. Tasted like melted cookies and cream ice cream!

About twice a year my Hedonist group makes a regular pilgrimage to Totoraku, LA’s “secret beef” restaurant. Toto (as its affectionately known) serves a refined version of Japanese Yakiniku, which is Beef BBQ originally from Korea but filtered through Japanese sensibility.

This time, we’re back to a 30 person mega dinner, quite the madness. It was so crazy that I’m going to list all the wine at the end because there was no progression, just a free-for-all.

The outside is basically a shell. The “Teriyaki House” has nothing to do with the food within, and the phone number is incorrect. The place is like a beef speakeasy!

The appetizer plate.

A very soft gelatinous thing that probably had some crab in it, certainly veggies.

Abalone with root vegetable.

Shrimp with endive and caviar.

Uni risotto balls.

Okra with squid and caviar.

Tomato and burrata.

Snapper rolled around vegetables.

Purple taro balls.

Salmon wrapped in daikon, stuffed with avocado and other vegetables.

Ham with fresh fig! (delicious)

Beef carpaccio with special salt, flowers, and some onion family derivative. Very yummy. This is eaten raw.

Two kinds of beef sashimi, eaten nearly raw. On the left beef tataki (rib eye) and on the right (in the cup) beef throat sashimi. Also on the plate is a bit of Korean style hot sauce (the red stuff), some intensely strong garlic (yum) and micro julienned ginger.

The throat was very chewy, more about texture. The rib eye soft and more flavorful. All went well with the garlic and ginger — I particularly liked the garlic.

A raw beef dish. Marinated raw beef is seen here with ginger, raw egg, cucumber, daikon, pine nuts, and something orange. Apparently, this is a Korean dish called Yukhoe. Actually, I’ve had it at Korean places, but in any case it’s delicious.

The elements are mixed together and then eaten. It’s hard to describe why it’s so good, but it is, with a very complex flavor and texture interplay.

The tabletop grill we cook the rest of the dishes on.

Beef tongue with salt. After cooking, you dip it in lemon juice.

Filet Mignon with bell peppers, onions, and sisho pepper.

Filet on the grill.

Momotaro tomatoes with a vinaigrette. These are supposedly incredibly good tomatoes, as a hater, I didn’t try them. I think Oyama-san gets them from some special place in Orange Country.

The “salad.” Cucumbers, carrots, daikon. They are served with this spicy sweet miso dip. The vegetables do help to move along the fat and protein heavy meat.

Outside rib eye with special salt and garlic.

The outside rib eye on the grill.

Inside rib eye.

The inside rib eye on the grill. Probably my favorite cut.

This was a special pork that Kaz made up for us. Most people get the exact same repertoire of dishes and we are lucky to get at least one special every time.

You have to special order the lamb, which like all of Kaz’s meats, is pretty wonderful.

One hell of a chop.

“Special” beef. I think it was a form of sirloin. It was certainly good, very salted.

And it on the grill.

Skirt steak.

The final grill of the night.

Toto serves homemade ice creams and sorbets as dessert.

So chaotic was this giant night that they brought out all five flavors on each plate and just placed them about the tables. I like the ice creams better than the sorbets here. The white chocolate was fantastic. Still, it’s all great.
Just a small portion of the crazy.

I’m detailing all the wine below. I missed photoing a whole bunch of bottles (even a Margaux!) and other than starting with the single white and ending with the dessert wine, there was no real order. Just grab as you like. We had so many extra bottles and so many magnums that almost nothing ran out quickly, so there was no probably getting a good taste. Just a problem finding a spare glass to hold it!

2004 Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet. Burghound 93. A pure, elegant and transparent nose trimmed in noticeable but not intrusive wood leads to big, rich and powerful medium weight plus flavors blessed with ample dry extract and that coats the palate on the impressively long, complex and mouth coating finish. This is still relatively primary and thus despite the premature oxidation risk, I would be inclined to leave it in the cellar for another 2 to 4 years though I stress that it would not be complete infanticide to open this now. I note the premature oxidation risk because another bottle that I opened did in fact have a hint of butterscotch on the nose and while not enough to spoil the experience, it was certainly less interesting than it would otherwise be.

1994 Gaja Barbaresco. 92 points. brillant red color , red fruits and spices , after half hour also come the coffee and chocolate . On the palate is round with smooth but still perceptible tannins , it seem younger , great and vibrant acidity.

1986 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Riserva Falletto. Parker 97. The revelation of the night, Giacosa’s 1986 Falletto Riserva is also one of my all-time favorites from this producer. It is a stunning Barolo, displaying a classic, deep nose of roses, tar, and smoke followed by massive amounts of dark, sweet fruit wrapped around a tight core of iron-like minerality, with tremendous structure, length, and freshness on the finish. This superb, multi-dimensional Barolo appears to still be a few years away from its peak, and should offer profound drinking until at least age 30 and probably beyond. An awesome effort.

agavin: fine fine wine — and still profoundly young.

1997 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Ornellaia. Parker 95. The 1997 Ornellaia (magnum) is a big, fat wine endowed with tons of fruit. Mocha, coffee beans and ripe, dark fruit emerge from the glass on a rich, opulent frame. The structural elements are easy to overlook, as the tannins are so juicy and ripe, and the fruit is incredibly intense. Simply put, everything is in the right place. Not surprisingly, 1997 is the year Ornellaia introduced their second wine, Le Serre Nuove, and the extra selection that was carried out to produce this wine has paid off big time. The 1997 is also the first Ornellaia in which Merlot is a full 30% of the blend, while Cabernet Sauvignon is 65% and Cabernet Franc is 5%. It is also the first year in which the percentage of new oak is 50%. In many ways, the 1997 is a wine that signals a move towards the more extroverted style that is common here these days. The 1997 Ornellaia, like many wines from Tuscany that year, is marked by a unique growing season that saw an April frost lower yields dramatically, followed by a hot, dry summer which concentrated the remaining fruit to a levels not seen previously. It remains a magnificent example of this Tuscan classic. Anticipated maturity: 2009-2017.

2006 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia Masseto. Parker 99. I can still remember nearly falling out of my chair the first time I tasted the 2006 Masseto (100% Merlot) from barrel. The wine is now in bottle, and it is every bit as monumental as I had hoped. The wine possesses staggering richness in a style that perfectly captures the essence of this great Tuscan vintage. Black cherries, flowers, licorice and sweet toasted oak are just some of the nuances that emerge from the 2006 Masseto. A wine of breathtaking depth, it also reveals superb clarity, freshness and vibrancy in a sumptuous, beautifully-balanced style. Simply put, the 2006 Masseto is a masterpiece from Tenuta dell’ Ornellaia. According to Agronomist/General Manager Leonardo Raspini the dryness of the vintage slowed down the maturation of the sugars, leaving the wine with an unusually high level of acidity, and therefore freshness, considering its overall ripeness. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2031.

1970 Montrose. Parker 87-92. A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, this was considered a brilliant vintage at the time, but looking back, most 1970s are slightly austere with aggressive tannins and, possibly unfairly, have never really reached the potential that was predicted for them. Harvest began on September 23 and continued through October11, under extremely fair and hot weather. The alcohol degree was high for the era – between 12.5% and 13.5%. In the tasting, the 1970 showed abundant cedar wood, very masculine, muscular character, with new saddle leather, tobacco leaf, truffle and slightly austere tannins. It is medium-bodied, shows plenty of amber at the edge and seems close to full maturity even though the tannins are never going to fully resolve themselves – a sign of the older style Bordeaux vintages. Drink over the next 10-15 years.

1978 Domaine de Chevalier. Parker 92. Along with the glorious 1970, this is my favorite vintage of Domaine de Chevalier during this decade. The 1978 has consistently been a textbook Graves with a tobacco-tinged, smoky, sweet, cedary, berry, and black currant-scented nose. It is still lusciously fruity, round, and generous. This medium-bodied, exceptionally stylish, elegant wine exhibits the exquisite levels of finesse Domaine de Chevalier can achieve without sacrificing flavor and concentration. Anticipated maturity: Now-2005.

1989 Montrose. Parker 98+. This was not in the tasting at the chateau, but I opened two bottles on my return home, because this is another near-perfect wine from Montrose. It is an unusual two-grade blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot. The wine emerged from another very hot, sunny, dry growing season, with early, generous flowering. Harvest in Montrose took place between September 11 and 28. The wine has never had any issues with brett, making it a somewhat safer selection than the more irregular 1990. Like a tortoise, the 1989 has finally begun to rival and possibly eclipse its long-time younger sibling, the 1990. The wine is absolutely spectacular and in auction sells for a much lower premium than the 1990. That should change. This is a magnificent Montrose, showing notes of loamy soil undertones, intermixed with forest floor, blueberry and blackberry liqueur and spring flowers. It has a full-bodied, intense, concentrated mouthfeel that is every bit as majestic as the 1990, but possibly slightly fresher and more delineated. This great wine should drink well for another 40-50 years.

1990 Vieux Chateau Certan. Parker 94. This was a very strong vintage for Vieux Chateau Certan. The 1990 reveals a deep garnet color to the rim along with a sweet bouquet of charcoal, licorice, roasted herbs, forest floor, and a meaty, truffle-like scent. A fleshy, full-bodied wine with exceptionally low acidity, plenty of melted tannin, and a long, layered finish, this beauty is close to full maturity, but it is in no danger of falling apart. It should keep for another 15+ years.

From my cellar: 2000 La Mondotte (magnum). Parker 98+. In two tastings this garagiste wine performed as if it were one of the wines of the vintage. Proprietor Stefan von Neipperg continues to lavish abundant attention on La Mondotte (as he does with all his estates), and the 2000 (80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc) boasts an inky/blue/purple color in addition to gorgeous aromas of graphite, caramel, toast, blackberries, and creme de cassis. A floral component also emerges as the wine sits in the glass. Extremely dense, full-bodied, and built for another twenty years of cellaring, I thought it would be close to full maturity, but it appears to need another 4-5 years of bottle age. It should age effortlessly for 2-3 decades.

2005 L’Evangile. Parker 95. L’Evangile’s sublime 2005, a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, is the first wine made in their brand new cuverie. Sadly, there are fewer than 3,500 cases of this deep purple-colored offering. A gorgeous nose of meat juices, black raspberries, chocolate, espresso, and notions of truffle oil as well as smoke is followed by a full-bodied Pomerol displaying sweet tannin, a flawless texture, and stunning complexity. While surprisingly showy and forward for a l’Evangile, it will undoubtedly shut down over the next year or so. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2030.

1998 Chateau Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape. Parker 92-96. The 1998 is unquestionably one of the great modern day Beaucastels, but because of its high Grenache content, it is different from some of the other classics.

2006 Domaine de Marcoux Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes. Parker 95. One of the vintage’s blockbusters is the 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes, with even higher alcohol (16.2%) than the 2007. It offers lovely notes of black fruits, truffle oil, roasted meats, beef blood, black raspberries, abundant kirsch, and a hint of roasted Provencal herbs. On a much faster evolutionary track than the 2007, it is a layered, multi-dimensional effort displaying a finish that lasts nearly 60 seconds. Some unresolved tannins in the finish suggest this wine should be cellared for 2-3 years, and consumed over the following two decades.

1993 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 88. The great glories of this house are its Cote Roties, of which there are now five separate offerings. The 1993s, which have just come on the marketplace, are from a troublesome vintage for everyone in Cote Rotie, rivaling 1984 in difficulty. Nevertheless, the single-vineyard wines have turned out well. As for the single vineyard wines, they are all excellent in 1993, but more herbaceous and clearly marked by the green pepper smells of slightly underripe Syrah. The most tannic of the three famous single vineyards is the 1993 Cote Rotie La Landonne. It is amazingly powerful and rich for the vintage, and reveals more fruit and intensity than it did prior to bottling. It exhibits a saturated ruby color, and copious amounts of pepper, tar, olives, licorice, and black cherry fruit in the nose. It remains the most muscular and structured of the three wines, and has managed to avoid the hollowness and vegetal character that plague so many 1993 northern Rhones. This Cote Rotie should age gracefully for a decade or more.

1989 Chapoutier Chateauneuf du Pape Barbe Rac. Parker 94. A classic for the vintage, the tight, muscular, tannic, saturated ruby/purple-colored 1989 requires another 3-5 years of cellaring. The bouquet offers up scents of Provencal herbs, pepper, garrigue, licorice, and gobs of kirsch liqueur. Full-bodied and powerful as well as extremely tannic, it will be drinkable between 2008-2020+.

2011 Grace Family Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Grown. So young I couldn’t find a review.

1999 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 97. The 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is one of the finest wines of the vintage. The 14.9% alcohol is barely noticeable given the amazing concentration and intensity. A saturated opaque purple color is followed by scents of vanilla, blackberry liqueur, crushed minerals, and a hint of white flowers. There is stunning intensity, tremendous purity, full body, and a remarkable, seamless finish (amazing given the elevated, austere tannin). Give the 1999 another 2-3 years of cellaring, and enjoy it over the following two decades or longer. A brilliant effort!

2001 Opus One Proprietary Red Wine. Parker 90. Performing better than it did eight years ago, the 2001 Opus One reveals a classic, French-like style with notes of cedar wood, melted licorice, black currants, roasted herbs and tobacco leaf. While not one of the stars of the vintage, it is a medium to full-bodied, outstanding effort that has reached full maturity. It should continue to drink well for another decade or more. This was a reassuring showing, although vintages over the last five years have been stronger and more powerful, with greater aging potential than the 2001.

2001 Opus One Proprietary Red Wine. IWC 93. Full medium ruby. Wild, flamboyantly expressive aromas of black raspberry, crystallized blackberry, smoke, leather, licorice, bitter chocolate and cedar, lifted by violet and spices. Smooth, mouthfilling and decidedly dry, with a lightly dusty character to its flavors of dark fruits, minerals and game. The broad, very long finish features building tannins. Quite different in style from the higher-pitched 2008, which was tighter and more floral at the same stage of its evolution.

2010 Quilceda Creek Cabernet Sauvignon. Parker 98+. Rich, backwards, structured and massively concentrated, the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon comes mostly from the Champoux Vineyard (also from Galitzine, Klipsun, Palengat and Tapteil) and is comprised of 99% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Merlot that spent 22 months in all new French oak. Offering up plenty of creme de cassis, coffee bean, toasted spice, pencil shavings and violet-like qualities on the nose, it has palate staining levels of extract and tannin that come through on the mid-palate and finish. Gorgeously full-bodied, layered and textured, with perfect balance, this awesome Cabernet needs to be forgotten for 5-6 years and will have two to three decades of longevity.

2010 Hundred Acre Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Kayli Morgan Vineyard. Parker 97. The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Kayli Morgan (only 25% of the normal production or 250 cases were made) offers a remarkable suppleness and velvety character to the tannins. Despite being 100% Cabernet Sauvignon you would almost swear this was a Merlot-based wine from one of the finest vineyards in Pomerol given its lusciousness and appeal. This spectacular 2010 possesses abundant creamy creme de cassis notes intermixed with notions of mulberries and spicy oak and a broad, expansive, savory appeal with decent acidity as well as ripe tannin. As in nearly every vintage, this 2010 can be drunk early yet has the uncanny intensity and overall harmony to age effortlessly. We still don’t know how long this wine will last since the first vintage was only in 2000, which was not one of Napa’s greatest years. The 2010 should hold up for at least 20-30 years.

1988 Château Suduiraut. IWC 88. Highly complex nose combines a stony, minerally pungency with notes of pineapple, orange peel, pine and petrol. Supple and fairly viscous, but with some slightly edgy acidity and a note of green herbs. The wine sugar is currently fighting its acids, creating a somewhat disjointed impression. Just a hint of alcoholic harshness on the finish.

Die hard hedonists with chef Kaz

And this place IS all about the beef, which is arguably some of the best I’ve ever had. Certainly the best yakiniku/Korean BBQ I’ve ever had. There is a perfect tenderness to every cut that’s fairly transcendant. I’m not even that much of a steak fan — but I’d take this stuff any time over even a spectacular cut from Mastros or Cut. The food here does not vary much from visit to visit. There is no menu. The quality however is utterly consistant. So while it isn’t an everyday sort of dining experience, perhaps once every 6-9 months, I love to return for my fix.

This evening was great fun, if seriously chaotic. We had almost all of the restaurant and there was so much wine almost nothing ran out — but there were also too many to even try in any reasonable fashion. But, hey, we are hedonists!

About twice a year my Hedonist group makes a regular pilgrimage to Totoraku, LA’s “secret beef” restaurant. Toto (as its affectionatly known ) serves a refined version of Japanese Yakiniku, which is Beef BBQ originally from Korea but filtered through Japanese sensibility.

This time, after some of our 30 person mega dinners, we kept it to just 11 people and vetted the wines to an even higher standard, basically close to 100 points, high pedigree, age, or some combination thereof. As you’ll see, we really tore it up and in terms of pure pleasure this was the most epic Hedonist event yet.

The outside is basically a shell. The “Teriyaki House” has nothing to do with the food within, and the phone number is incorrect. The place is like a beef speakeasy!

NV Billecart-Salmon Rose. Parker 90. The NV Brut Rose emerges from the glass with the essence of freshly cut flowers, berries and minerals in a mid-weight, gracious style. It shows gorgeous inner perfume, along with persistent notes of chalkiness that frame the long, sublime finish. Year in, year out, this estate’s NV Brut Rose is one of the most consistently outstanding wines in the region.

The appetizer plate.

Jellyfish sunomono.

House made black sesame tofu.

Octopus and tomatoes.

On the left abalone (very tender), special marinated okra, and in the middle a yellowtail avocado roll.

2006 Agrapart & Fils Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Venus. Parker 95. The 2006 Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Venus brings together the best qualities of the house style. Rich yet weightless, the Venus impresses for its refined, layered personality. Sweet floral notes, Chamomile, spices and citrus resonate with tons of class and sheer personality. This is yet another great showing from Agrapart. The Venus is made from a tiny parcel in Avize measuring just 0.3 hectares and is farmed entirely by the horse for whom the wine is named.

Uni risotto balls on the right.

Shrimp with endive and caviar.

Mozzarella (or burrata?) with a bit of fruit and fish. On the right a very soft gelatinous thing that probably had some crab in it.

1970 Latour. Parker 98-85. The aromas suggest this wine has peaked with dusty notes of old leather, dried figs and grandma’s room. The tannins have gone a little powdery with the medium+ level of acidity taking centre stage in front of the remaining bits of fruit. Medium to long finish. Perhaps slightly past it but still provides an interesting glass.

agavin: I put in the unusual reverse order because this is a wine in decline, and even Parker has noted it. Our bottle tasted like chocolate coffee syrup. It was interesting, but pretty far gone.

Beef carpaccio with special salt, flowers, and some onion family derivative. Very yummy. This is eaten raw.

1985 Mouton-Rothschild. Parker 90. The rich, complex, well-developed bouquet of oriental spices, toasty oak, herbs, and ripe fruit is wonderful. On the palate, the wine is also rich, forward, long, and sexy. It ranks behind both Haut-Brion and Chateau Margaux in 1985. I am surprised by how evolved and ready to drink this wine is. Readers looking for a big, boldly constructed Mouton should search out other vintages, as this is a tame, forward, medium-weight wine that is close to full maturity. It is capable of lasting another 15+ years. This estate compares their 1985 to their 1959, but to me it is more akin to their 1962 or 1953.

agavin: Our bottle was in great shape and drinking very nicely. Still, this won’t be getting any better.

Two kinds of beef sashimi, eaten nearly raw. On the left beef tataki (rib eye) and on the right (in the cup) beef throat sashimi. Also on the plate is a bit of Korean style hot sauce (the red stuff), some intensely strong garlic (yum) and micro julienned ginger.

The throat was very chewy, more about texture. The rib eye soft and more flavorful. All went well with the garlic and ginger — I particularly liked the garlic.

1988 Lafleur. Parker 93. Consistently one of the strongest candidates for the wine of the vintage, Lafleur’s 1988 has a dark plum/ruby color and a gorgeous nose of white flowers intermixed with kirsch liqueur and raspberries. The wine is full-bodied, sweet, round, and beautifully pure, with moderate tannin, medium to full body, and great elegance and complexity. This wine has come around faster than I would have thought.

agavin: Still needs some time, but was pretty darn nice!

A raw beef dish. Marinated raw beef is seen here with ginger, raw egg, cucumber, daikon, pine nuts, and something orange. Apparently, this is a Korean dish called Yukhoe. Actually, I’ve had it at Korean places, but in any case it’s delicious.

The elements are mixed together and then eaten. It’s hard to describe why it’s so good, but it is, with a very complex flavor and texture interplay.

2004 Coche-Dury Meursault. Burghound 91. Soft mineral reduction does not materially detract from the green fruit, citrus, stone and slightly smoky nose that introduces detailed, pure and attractively intense middle weight flavors that possess excellent vibrancy on the taut, linear and refined finish. This isn’t quite as complex or concentrated as the ’02 version (see herein) but the sheer persistence is most impressive. And in the same fashion as the 2002, this has reached an inflection point of maturity where it could be enjoyed now or held for a few more years depending on how one prefers aged white burgs. For my taste, I would hold this for another 2 to 4 years but many people will find the current state of maturity to be perfect now.

agavin: Burghound must hold Coche up to some very high magical standard, because even though this is a village wine it was fabulous, reduced, and just plain hedonistic.

As any regular Totoraku goer knows, any new dish is a big deal here, as the menu is very consistent. This is one of TWO new specials chef Kaz whipped up for us tonight, Sawara, a kind of Spanish Mackerel. It is considered the best kind of Mackerel in Japan. Not only it is a big variety, but its comparatively white flesh is succulent in almost any kind of cooking! Here we have it miso marinated and raw. We lightly seared it on the grill and enjoyed!

Awesome and very rich!

2004 Chave Hermitage Blanc. Parker 95. The 2004 Hermitage blanc, which hit 15% natural alcohol, is another superb effort, continuing a succession of totally profound white Hermitages from 2003, 2004, and 2005. As many readers know, this small family producer has been making wine in Hermitage since 1481! The 2004 (about 1000 cases) reveals a light gold color, terrific finesse and elegance in spite of its enormous power, unctuosity, and richness. Of course, it is not as honeyed as the otherworldly 2003 (which hit 16% natural alcohol) but it is an amazingly full-bodied, powerful wine with pervasive honeysuckle, peach liqueur, and nectarine notes intermixed with licorice, quince, and acacia flowers. This is gorgeous wine which should evolve for 20-25 years.

agavin: Unfortunately our bottle was a little corked or oxidized.

Beef tongue with salt. After cooking, you dip it in lemon juice.

1989 Lynch Bages. Parker 99+. The 1989 has taken forever to shed its formidable tannins, but what a great vintage of Lynch Bages! I would rank it at the top of the pyramid although the 1990, 2000, and down the road, some of the more recent vintages such as 2005, 2009 and 2010 should come close to matching the 1989’s extraordinary concentration and undeniable aging potential. Its dense purple color reveals a slight lightening at the edge and the stunning bouquet offers classic notes of creme de cassis, subtle smoke, oak and graphite. Powerful and rich with some tannins still to shed at age 22, it is still a young adolescent in terms of its evolution and will benefit from another 4-5 years of cellaring. It should prove to be a 50 year wine.

agavin: Best Lynch ever, and still an awesome monster.

Filet Mignon with bell peppers, onions, and sisho pepper.

Filet on the grill.

1989 Latour. Parker 89. Neither the 1989 or 1990 wines has budged in quality or development since I first tasted them in cask. I am still disappointed by the 1989, wondering how this chateau produced an elegant, medium-weight wine that seems atypically restrained for Latour. The deep ruby color is followed by a wine with surprisingly high acidity and hard tannin, but not the depth, richness, and power expected from this great estate. This closed wine is admittedly in need of 5-6 years of cellaring, but what is so alarming is its lack of weight, ripeness, and intensity, particularly when compared to the 1990. I suspect there is more than what has been revealed in recent tastings, but this looks to be an excellent as opposed to outstanding wine. In the context of the vintage, it is a disappointment.

agavin: I’d certainly give our bottle better than an 89, but I’d probably agree that Lynch made a better wine in 89!

Outside rib eye with special salt and garlic.

On the grill.

Inside rib eye.

The inside rib eye on the grill.

1998 Lafite-Rothschild. Parker 98. A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, this wine represents only 34% of Lafite’s total harvest. In a less than perfect Medoc vintage, it has been spectacular since birth, putting on more weight and flesh over the last year. This opaque purple-colored 1998 is close to perfection. The spectacular nose of lead pencil, smoky, mineral, and black currant fruit soars majestically from the glass. The wine is elegant yet profoundly rich, revealing the essence of Lafite’s character. The tannin is sweet, and the wine is spectacularly layered yet never heavy. The finish is sweet, super-rich, yet impeccably balanced and long (50+ seconds).

agavin: This was a contentious wine at our table. I loved it, thinking it had tons of complex character. Some thought it was corked (there was a hint on the nose but I didn’t taste it).

Short rib. It was certainly good, very salted.

The “salad.” Cucumbers, carrots, daikon. They are served with this spicy sweet miso dip. The vegetables do help to move along the fat and protein heavy meat.

Momotaro tomatoes with a vinaigrette. These are supposedly incredibly good tomatoes, as a hater, I didn’t try them. I think Oyama-san gets them from some special place in Orange Country.

From my cellar: 2000 Chateau Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape Hommage A Jacques Perrin. Parker 97. The 2000 Chateauneuf du Pape Hommage a Jacques Perrin is a blend of 60% Mourvedre, 20% Grenache, 10% Counoise, and 10% Syrah, the standard blend for this cuvee except for the 1998, which had 60% Grenache and only 20% Mourvedre. The 2000 possesses an impenetrable black/purple color as well as a sumptuous bouquet of melted licorice, creosote, new saddle leather, blackberry and cherry fruit as well as roasted meats. Sweet and full-bodied, with great intensity, huge power, and a finish that lasts for 67 seconds by my watch, this is an amazing tour de force in winemaking. Even in a flattering, forward-styled vintage such as 2000, it will need 7-8 years of cellaring.

agavin: I’m biased, but this was my favorite wine of the night. It was just staggering.

1982 Penfolds Grange. Parker 97. The 1982 is another superb example of that. One of the jammiest, most precocious Granges when it was released, it has never gone through a closed stage and continues to drink beautifully. A full-bodied, opulent Grange, it reveals an inky/purple color to the rim as well as a beautiful nose of crushed blueberries, blackberries, smoke, toast, roasted herbs, and road tar. This dense, plush, expansive, seamless, seductive 1982 has not changed much since I had it nearly a decade ago.

agavin: Also fab, but amazingly (for a 32 year old), it could go for decades more.

You have to special order the lamb, which like all of Kaz’s meats, is pretty wonderful.

Grilling up the chops.

One hell of a chop.
2004 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Falletto. Parker 96. Giacosa’s 2004 Barolo Falletto is so compelling it will be hard not to drink it in its youth. This gorgeous Barolo reveals a deeply structured frame layered with sweet dark fruit, mint, spice and pine. At once delicate and powerful, it is a beautifully finessed wine that is sure to provide much pleasure. A recent bottle of the 1982 is a testament to the virtues of this great site as interpreted by Bruno Giacosa.

agavin: too young.

Skirt steak.

Grilling.2002 Torbreck Run Rig. Parker 99. The 2002 Run Rig (97% Shiraz and 3% Viognier aged in 100% new French oak) represents the essence of old vine Barossa fruit. Extraordinarily opulent and rich, but playing it closer to the vest than the 2001, it gets my nod as one of the most remarkable wines made in either the Southern or Northern Hemisphere. An inky/purple color is accompanied by a sumptuous bouquet of apricots, honeysuckle, black raspberries, blackberries, licorice, and a hint of roasted meats. The wood has been soaked up by the wine’s extraordinary concentration. Fashioned from four sectors of Barossa (Maranaga, Koonunga Hill, Moppa, and Greenock), it spent 30 months in primarily new oak, and was bottled without fining or filtration.

agavin: also massive and delicious.

Here is our second “newcommer” for tonight. Bacon!!!!! Specially marinated.

And grilled up. Amazing!

2001 Schrader Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard. Parker 99. More mature and evolved (or maybe it just has more to it), the 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To-Kalon Vineyard tastes like a great vintage of Pontet-Canet or Mouton Rothschild. This profound Napa Cabernet Sauvignon reveals gorgeous notes of creme de cassis, a celestial floral and espresso character, an inky/purple color, a dense full-bodied mouthfeel and hints of wood smoke and a volcanic/burning ember note. Quite intense with a prodigious mouthfeel and a nearly 60-second finish, this wine can be drunk now or cellared for another quarter of a century. Bravo!

agavin: Massive!

Hmm, can’t remember which meat this was. Too much wine!

Or this one.1978 Rieussec. Parker 82. The 1978 Rieussec just missed the mark. While quite good, it is not special. Too alcoholic, and a trifle too heavy and overblown, this wine has a nice honeyed character and rich, unctuous flavors, but evidences little botrytis.

There was also a 1903 port that I forgot to photo! The bottle was two thirds empty from evaporation but the wine was amazing.

Toto serves homemade ice creams and sorbets as dessert.

So chaotic was this giant night that they brought out all five flavors on each plate and just placed them about the tables. I like the ice creams better than the sorbets here. The white chocolate was fantastic. Still, it’s all great.

Notice the smokey haze

And this place IS all about the beef, which is arguably some of the best I’ve ever had. Certainly the best yakiniku/Korean BBQ I’ve ever had. There is a perfect tenderness to every cut that’s fairly transcendant. I’m not even that much of a steak fan — but I’d take this stuff any time over even a spectacular cut from Mastros or Cut. The food here does not vary much from visit to visit. There is no menu. The quality however is utterly consistant. So while it isn’t an everyday sort of dining experience, perhaps once every 6-9 months, I love to return for my fix.

This evening was our best time yet. The limited number of people (11), the quality of the wines, and our discipline in pouring them in order really upped the ante. Toto is always fun, but when we have 25-30 people it’s so crazy you can’t even keep track of the wines (let alone the conversation). In that circumstance if someone grabs a bottle away it’s gone forever. Here, it will go around easily and still have a couple inches left for seconds.

We also struck up a couple conversations at adjacent tables and swapped some wines (scoring an 89 Mouton and something else great).

A spectacular evening — really, truly, deeply epic. It was about 5 hours of mind boggling wines and crazy beef.

This year the Hedonists have been doing more high end themed dinners. So earlier in the fall we celebrated top end Burgundy, and now we are doing so with Bordeaux. Technically, this was a First Grown Bordeaux dinner. We also included La Mission, Lafleur, and Petrus (no one brought one, sadly). A pair of top California Cabernet’s snuck in too.

The space is chic and modern. Above is the La Cienega entrance.

NV Krug Grande Cuvee. Parker 91-95. The NV Brut Grande Cuvee emerges from the glass with freshly cut flowers, almonds, pastry and spices. This is a relatively floral, bright Grande Cuvee with fewer of the oxidative qualities that are typical of the house style. According to Krug’s ID Code, this bottle is based on the 2004 vintage, which explains the wine’s tense, taut personality. Another year or two on the cork will only help the wine gain expressiveness and depth. Today, the Grande Cuvee is quite reticent and not showing the full breadth of its personality.

These look like Glazed Pop’ems, but they’re savory. And that sauce is pretty much a under-spiced chimichurri.

1994 Laville-Haut-Brion Blanc. Parker 94. This tightly knit, medium-bodied wine exhibits an intense, sweet nose of toast, minerals, honey and spices. There is ripe fruit and intensity on the palate, but the overall impression is one of a backward, undeveloped wine.

“BLUE ICEBERG.” smoked bacon – blue cheese – pickled tomato.

Ron was generous to bring this treat, the rare “dry” wine from Chateau D’Yquem. This powerful and perfumed wine is by far my favorite white Bordeaux.

1978 Lur-Saluces “Y”. 97 points. Lush fruit aromas with big accompanying spice. Powerful aromas and flavors throughout. Moderate length. Worked very well with a seared scallop served over a slightly sweet puree. Showed young for a wine almost 35 years old.

“ORGANIC ARUGULA. grilled peaches, macrona almonds, manchego cheese.”

“HEARTS OF ROMAINE.” garlic crouton – parmesan lemon dressing.

1988 Mouton-Rothschild. Parker 89. The 1988 has an aroma of exotic spices, minerals, blackcurrants, and oak. In the mouth, it is a much firmer, tougher, more obviously tannic wine than the 1989. It is a beautifully made 1988 that will last 20-30 years, but the astringency of the tannins is slightly troubling. Patience will be a necessity for purchasers of this wine.

“TUNA TARTARE. soy emulsion – avocado – taro chips.”

1981 Chateau Margaux. Parker 91. In weight and texture, the 1981 Margaux is closest in style to the 1979. It is an outstanding wine, even in the company of the monumental wines of 1982, 1983, and 1986, although it does not have the power and weight of these vintages. It is still very dark ruby/purple-colored. The aromatics suggest ripe cassis fruit, spicy vanillin oakiness, and violets. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, concentrated, tannic, and extremely long. It is just beginning to open and evolve.

1990 Haut Brion. Parker 98. In terms of the brilliant complexity and nobility of the aromatics, scorched earth, black currants, plums, charcoal, cedar, and spices, the 1990 offers an aromatic explosion that is unparalleled. It is always fascinating to taste this wine next to the 1989, which is a monumental effort, but much more backward and denser, without the aromatic complexity of the 1990. The 1990 put on weight after bottling, and is currently rich, full-bodied, opulent, even flamboyant by Haut Brion’s standards. It is an incredible expression of a noble terroir in a top vintage. While it has been fully mature for a number of years, it does not reveal any bricking at the edge, and I suspect it will stay at this level for another 10-15 years … but why wait? It is irresistible now.

Personally, I thought this bottle was too funky. It had a strong bacterial contamination that gave it unpleasant bitter notes.

“Shrimp cocktail.” Classic.

1994 Haut Brion. Parker 92. This is one of the surprise sleeper wines of the vintage which has more successes than many people suspect in spite of all the rain. The tremendous drainage enjoyed by the Haut Brion vineyard worked in its favor during this wet September harvest. The color is deep plum/ruby with a bit of lightening at the edge. Notes of compost, truffle, earth, spice box, dried herbs, and licorice compete with sweet black cherry and currant fruit. The wine is medium-bodied, with a relatively plump, chewy feel to it. It is certainly one of the top half dozen or so wines of the vintage. The tannins are still there, but the wine seems far more accessible than the two bigger wines that Haut Brion produced in 1995 and 1996.

“BROILED MAINE LOBSTER. lobster butter, tarragon, baked lemon.”

1996 Haut Brion.Parker 92-96. As I indicated last year, Haut-Brion utilized only 60% of its production in the 1996 final blend (50% Merlot, 39% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc). While it is undoubtedly true that the appellations of Pessac-Leognan and Graves were less successful in 1996 than the Medoc, the wines produced under the administration of Jean Delmas (i.e., Haut-Brion, La Mission-Haut-Brion, and La Tour-Haut-Brion) are brilliant in the 1996 vintage, continuing a trend that has made Haut-Brion one of the most consistent first-growths in Bordeaux (consider the superlative performances in such difficult vintages as 1993, 1992, and 1987). The 1996 Haut-Brion has put on weight, and was even sweeter and more fragrant in November than it was earlier in the year. The wine exhibits a dark ruby color with purple nuances. Haut-Brion’s signature is most frequently its glorious perfume of tobacco, black fruits, smoke, and dried herbs, combined with sweet, supple fruit, all crammed into a concentrated wine that never has the weight or tannic power of a Medoc, or the thick unctuosity of a top right bank wine. As I have frequently written, the one significant change to my palate over the last twenty years has been the fact that while I have always admired Haut-Brion, now I am addicted to its perfume and complexity. It is never the biggest of the first-growths, but it is usually among the most compelling wines of this elite group, with the most profound set of aromatics of any of its peers. That being said, the 1996 should turn out to be an exquisite wine, perhaps slightly more structured and backward than the superb 1995, but very rich, with gobs of smoky, cherry, tobacco-tinged fruit, medium body, exceptional purity and equilibrium, and a long, moderately tannic finish. The tannins taste extremely sweet.

24oz Porterhouse.

Skirt steak.1990 La Mission Haut Brion. Parker 99. Reminiscing over the 1989 and 1990 vintages, which I have followed from birth, there always seemed to be a dramatic difference in quality. Not that the 1990 was not a top wine, but in its infancy, I never thought it would come close to being as riveting and magnetic as its older sibling, the 1989. However, it has proven to be nearly as prodigious. One of the hottest years in Bordeaux, 1990, a vintage of enormous yields, even dwarfing yields in 1985 and 1982, produced a fabulously open-knit, seemingly fast track La Mission that, at age 22, shows no signs of fading or losing its grip. The color is slightly more mature and evolved than the 1989’s, exhibiting a lighter rim and a less dark blue/ruby/purple hue. Classic La Mission-Haut-Brion aromatics of camphor, licorice, scorched earth, hot bricks, barbecue, cassis, blueberry and kirsch are well displayed. Broad, expansive, velvety-textured and opulent with high glycerin and perhaps slightly higher alcohol (I don’t have the statistics to verify that), the 1990 is as delicious and open-knit as the 1989, with less density and possibly less potential longevity. Most 1990s have been quick to reach full maturity, and as brilliant as they can be, they need to be monitored carefully by owners. Currently in late adolescence, but close to full maturity, the 1990 should hold in a cold cellar for another 15-20 years. However, it is a fabulous wine to inspect, taste and consume, so why wait?

This bottle was a hair funky too, but blew off and became rather elegant.

Bone in rib eye.

From my cellar: 1982 Lafite-Rothschild. Parker 100. The 1982 Lafite possesses a dark, dense ruby/purple color with only a subtle lightening at the rim. Spectacular aromatics offer jammy cherry and black fruits intertwined with lead pencil, mineral, and smoky wood scents. Powerful for a Lafite, this wine unfolds to reveal extraordinary richness, purity, and overall symmetry in addition to stunning flavor depth and persistence. The finish lasts for nearly a minute. Plenty of tannin remains, and the wine displays a vibrancy and youthfulness that belie its 18 years of age. The modern day equivalent of Lafite-Rothschild’s immortal 1959, the 1982 will enjoy another 30-70 years of life! An amazing achievement!

Certainly WOTN. Pretty much unanimous. I was very pleased because it always sucks to open a pricey bottle one has had for a while and find it not up to snuff.

Bone in filet.

Some steak with crab on it.

2001 Lafleur. Parker 92-96. This Merlot-dominated 2001 has added considerable weight since last year. It is opaque purple in color, with an extraordinary bouquet of kirsch liqueur intermixed with hints of cola and underbrush. Full-bodied, sweet, and explosive on the palate, with great density and chewiness, it exhibits surprisingly low acidity as well as more precociousness than most top vintages of Lafleur. It is increasingly obvious that this is a sensational effort.

Very young Merlot, but impeccably balanced.

Another steak.

And another (bone in). I’m not an expert at spotting steaks.

1989 Latour. Parker 90. Neither the 1989 or 1990 wines has budged in quality or development since I first tasted them in cask. I am still disappointed by the 1989, wondering how this chateau produced an elegant, medium-weight wine that seems atypically restrained for Latour. The deep ruby color is followed by a wine with surprisingly high acidity and hard tannin, but not the depth, richness, and power expected from this great estate. This closed wine is admittedly in need of 5-6 years of cellaring, but what is so alarming is its lack of weight, ripeness, and intensity, particularly when compared to the 1990. I suspect there is more than what has been revealed in recent tastings, but this looks to be an excellent as opposed to outstanding wine. In the context of the vintage, it is a disappointment.

I loved this wine, even if Parker didn’t. I happen to be a Latour fan.

Bone in filet with with crab oscar style (i.e. with bernaise sauce!).

Mac & Cheese.

2001 Latour. Parker 95. Deep garnet colored, the nose is open and expressive even at this youthful stage, giving notes of black berry and black cherry compote, potpourri and anise with hints of sandalwood and cloves. The palate is drinking beautifully now (though with loads more to give), offering a high level of ripe, velvety tannins, enlivening acid and just enough fruit concentration, finishing long.

“Sweet corn pudding.” We took to calling this stuff “corn porn” it was so good. We ordered 5 of them too!

“creamy yukon potatoes.”

“Parmesan truffle fries.”

My plate, a heart attack in the making.

Yarom carousing with our lovely servers, Rachel and Brenda. Our service was great. They were incredibly friendly and helpful and the restaurant was quiet allowing them to focus on our labor intensive table. We used ALL the cabernet glasses! STK doesn’t have a Sommelier (which is kind of mind boggling) but Rachel was a great sport and a fast learner and she managed well with the opening and glasses, even if Yarom and I had to decant and do the pouring. I played Somm and poured many of the wines, but it’s a job. Unfortunately, things do go much better that way because you need someone to make consistent small pours so that the bottle gets all the way around 15-16 people. Self pouring, if one or two over pour, the people at the end get screwed.

1976 Rieussec. Parker 90. This is one of the most controversial vintages of Rieussec. Very dark gold in color, some observers have said it is oxidized and is falling apart. Despite the dark color, the remarkable taste seems to suggest that this wine has a way to go. The huge nose of toasted almonds, caramel, chocolate, and brown sugar does exhibit a trace of volatile acidity, so technocrats are likely to be turned off. Incredibly rich and full bodied, with a honeyed, luscious texture and extremely intense flavors, this exotic, hugely proportioned wine (15% alcohol) can only be served as a dessert. The yield at Rieussec in 1976 was 2.5 hectoliters per hectare, which is approximately one third of a glass of wine per vine. This is a bold, rather overblown style of Sauternes, but I love it.

1976 De Suduiraut. Parker 92. For me, the 1976 is the greatest Suduiraut of the seventies, and the only wine other than the 1989 that resembles the magnificent 1959 this property produced. Medium to dark amber/gold, this full-bodied, massive wine has a very intense bouquet of vanillin oak, ripe pineapples, and melted caramel. Very deep and viscous, this is a decadently opulent Suduiraut with enormous presence in the mouth.

The peanut butter, chocolate, banana thingy. Inside the chocolate disc was a bunch of peanut butter cream. It was awesome.

Donut on a fork.

About a third of our glasses!

The overall evening was spectacular. The place treated us really well with swift and friendly service you hardly noticed. Plus, there was the excellent company and all our amazing wines! The wines tonight were really fabulous, particularly in the second half. Some of the Bordeaux’s from the lesser vintages (88, 94 etc) were a little sour or awkward, and at least one 90 was funked (corked), but the ones that were on, like the 82 Lafite, 95 Margaux, 85 Mouton, and 89 Latour were fabulous. The 2000 Grace and 2001 Lafleur were also amazing, but very young. For me, the 82 Lafite stood out above all, it was mature, complex, and balanced on all notes.

As a steakhouse, I find STK much like Mastro’s but about 5% worse on average — although there are some different starters and sides, many of which are excellent. It’s also quite a bit cheaper than Mastro’s, and lets us skip the corkage, which is huge! We were out of here for $120 a person, including tax and tip, which is pretty amazing for such an enormous feast at a high end steakhouse.

About twice a year my Hedonist group takes over Totoraku. It serves a very refined version of Japanese Yakiniku, which is Beef BBQ originally from Korea but filtered through Japanese sensibility.

Last spring, we took the whole restaurant with 28 people, but the evening was total chaos (albeit fun chaos), and this time we decided to split it into two nights. The first night (which I attended) was 13 people, oriented toward the heavy hitters wine wise, and the second night was about 18-19 with some non drinkers. Still, there were some pretty incredible wines that night too.

Everyone brings a wine vetted by the group and the standard is very high at this event, basically close to 100 points, high pedigree, age, or some combination thereof. As you’ll see, we really tore it up and in terms of scale and wine this was the most epic Hedonist event yet.

The outside is basically a shell. The “Teriyaki House” has nothing to do with the food within, and the phone number is incorrect. The place is like a beef speakeasy!

NV Krug Grande Cuvee. Parker 91-95. The NV Brut Grande Cuvee emerges from the glass with freshly cut flowers, almonds, pastry and spices. This is a relatively floral, bright Grande Cuvee with fewer of the oxidative qualities that are typical of the house style. According to Krug’s ID Code, this bottle is based on the 2004 vintage, which explains the wine’s tense, taut personality. Another year or two on the cork will only help the wine gain expressiveness and depth. Today, the Grande Cuvee is quite reticent and not showing the full breadth of its personality.

Shrimp with endive and caviar. Little okra’s to the left front of them.

1970 Château Haut-Brion. Parker 85. Although surprisingly light-bodied, consistently pleasant and enjoyable, this is an undistinguished effort. The 1970 Haut-Brion has always come across as angular, and lacking the exceptional perfume and complexity this estate can achieve. In this tasting, the wine displayed vegetal, tobacco scents, good spice, some fruit, and a medium ruby color with significant amber. The tannin and acidity were too high for the amount of fruit, glycerin, and extract. Drink it up.

Beef carpaccio with special salt, flowers, and some onion family derivative. Very yummy. This is eaten raw.

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Two kinds of beef sashimi, eaten nearly raw. On the left beef tataki (rib eye) and on the right (in the cup) beef throat sashimi. Also on the plate is a bit of Korean style hot sauce (the red stuff), some intensely strong garlic (yum) and micro julienned ginger.

The throat was very chewy, more about texture. The rib eye soft and more flavorful. All went well with the garlic and ginger — I particularly liked the garlic.

From my cellar: 1991 Chapoutier Ermitage le Pavillon. Parker 100. This is a Le Pavilion of mythical proportions. Produced from extremely old vines, some dating from the mid-nineteenth century, with yields averaging under 15 hectoliters per hectare, this is the richest, most concentrated and profound wine made in Hermitage. The 1991 Ermitage Le Pavilion follows the pattern of the 1989 and 1990-it is another perfect wine. The saturated black/purple color is followed by a compelling bouquet of spices, roasted meats, and black and red fruits. Enormously concentrated yet with brilliant focus and delineation to its awesomely endowed personality, this extraordinary wine should age effortlessly for three plus decades. Very powerful and full, yet displaying silky tannin, this is a seamless beauty! Anticipated maturity: 2001-2035.

A raw beef dish. Marinated raw beef is seen here with ginger, raw egg, cucumber, daikon, pine nuts, and something orange. Apparently, this is a Korean dish called Yukhoe. Actually, I’ve had it at Korean places, but in any case it’s delicious.

The elements are mixed together and then eaten. It’s hard to describe why it’s so good, but it is, with a very complex flavor and texture interplay.

1994 Penfolds Grange. Parker 91. This is the first vintage where Grange went to a bottle with laser-etched identification numbers to preclude the possibility of fraudulent bottles. The wine, a blend of 89% Shiraz and 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, shows some toasty oak mixed with notes of root vegetables, damp earth, blackberry liqueur, prune, and licorice. The wine is dense, full-bodied, not terribly complex in the mouth, but layered and rich. I would not be surprised to see the rating on this wine improve as this youthful Grange continues to evolve.

Beef tongue with salt. After cooking, you dip it in lemon juice.

1993 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 88. The great glories of this house are its Cote Roties, of which there are now five separate offerings. The 1993s, which have just come on the marketplace, are from a troublesome vintage for everyone in Cote Rotie, rivaling 1984 in difficulty. Nevertheless, the single-vineyard wines have turned out well. As for the single vineyard wines, they are all excellent in 1993, but more herbaceous and clearly marked by the green pepper smells of slightly underripe Syrah. The most tannic of the three famous single vineyards is the 1993 Cote Rotie La Landonne. It is amazingly powerful and rich for the vintage, and reveals more fruit and intensity than it did prior to bottling. It exhibits a saturated ruby color, and copious amounts of pepper, tar, olives, licorice, and black cherry fruit in the nose. It remains the most muscular and structured of the three wines, and has managed to avoid the hollowness and vegetal character that plague so many 1993 northern Rhones. This Cote Rotie should age gracefully for a decade or more.

Filet Mignon with bell peppers, onions, and sisho pepper.

Filet on the grill.

1996 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 93-96. The 1996 Cote Rotie La Landonne is a wine with tremendous intensity and tannin, as well as a pronounced roasted herb, smoked meat, and Asian spice-scented nose with tell-tale black fruits, melted tar, and truffle notions in the background. Rich, powerful, and massive, this effort will require 3-4 years of cellaring, and will last for two decades.

The “salad.” Cucumbers, carrots, daikon. They are served with this spicy sweet miso dip. The vegetables do help to move along the fat and protein heavy meat.

2002 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Parker 94. One of the best wines of the vintage, this is a classic Pauillac that is a blend of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 6% Petit Verdot. Dense ruby/purple in color with a glorious nose of melted licorice, lavender, barbecue smoke, black currants, and graphite, the wine is tannic, classically structured with an opaque ruby/purple color, beautiful definition, and a 1996-ish personality. This deep, full-bodied, elegant yet powerful 2002 should age handsomely for over two decades. Some patience will be required since this vintage exhibits more muscle and virility than normal.

Momotaro tomatoes with a vinaigrette. These are supposedly incredibly good tomatoes, as a hater, I didn’t try them. I think Oyama-san gets them from some special place in Orange Country.

2004 Bruno Giacosa Barolo Falletto. Parker 96. Giacosa’s 2004 Barolo Falletto is so compelling it will be hard not to drink it in its youth. This gorgeous Barolo reveals a deeply structured frame layered with sweet dark fruit, mint, spice and pine. At once delicate and powerful, it is a beautifully finessed wine that is sure to provide much pleasure. A recent bottle of the 1982 is a testament to the virtues of this great site as interpreted by Bruno Giacosa.

My first time having this dish. Marinated duck.

The duck grilling. This was a lovely addition to the collection of meats.

1992 Bryant Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon. Parker 91. Over the next year readers should be on the lookout for some of the 1,000 case production of Don Bryant’s Cabernet Sauvignon from an old vineyard on Pritchard Hill near the Chappellet Vineyard. Bryant’s 1992 Cabernet Sauvignon offers an impressive black/purple color, rusty tannin, immense concentration, full body, and enormous richness in the finish.

Outside rib eye with special salt and garlic.

The outside rib eye on the grill.

1999 Greenock Creek Shiraz Roennfeldt Road. Parker 98. There are 236 cases of the 1999 Shiraz Roennfeldt Road (also from 65-year-old vines). Although it pushes ripeness to the limit, it does not reveal any raisiny/pruny characteristics. It offers wonderful freshness, good acidity, superb intensity, and copious quantities of blackberry, cassis, crushed rock, floral, and spicy new oak notes. Massive and concentrated with perfect equilibrium, it can be drunk now and over the next 25 years. Kudos to one of the world’s finest wine producers!

Inside rib eye.

The inside rib eye on the grill.

2002 Marquis Philips Shiraz Integrity. Parker 94-99. Deep garnet-brick colored, the 2002 Integrity is a 100% Shiraz that displays evolved leather and tobacco notes intermingled with some meaty and gamey aromas and nuances of coffee, olives and underbrush. Full bodied, it has a coffee flavors in the mouth, medium levels of velvety tannins, and a medium-high acid backbone. It finishes long with notes of eucalyptus showing through. It is drinking now.

“Special” beef. I think it was a form of sirloin. It was certainly good, very salted.

And it on the grill.

2009 Hundred Acre Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Few And Far Between. Parker 94. The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Few and Far Between Vineyard has developed beautifully since I last tasted it from barrel. Mocha, espresso, exotic spices and orange peel all come together in this inviting, multi-dimensional Cabernet Sauvignon. Totally alive in the glass, the wine is constantly changing, and reveals different sides of its personality with each taste. Hints of sweet red berries and cloves add complexity on the long, polished finish.

You have to special order the lamb, which like all of Kaz’s meats, is pretty wonderful.

Grilling up the chops.

One hell of a chop.

2009 Schrader Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon RBS To Kalon Vineyard. Parker 96. The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon RBS Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard comes across as dark, plush and inviting, but with greater inner focus and minerality than some of the other wines here. Graphite, smoke, tar and licorice are some of the notes that wrap around the intense, juicy finish. I especially admire the way the RBS grows in the glass as it turns more explosive over time, yet never loses its more refined shades of expression. The RBS is 100% clone 337 from the B1 and B2 blocks. According to winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown, it is the addition of fruit from B2 (new this year) that gives the 2009 much of its personality.

Skirt steak.

And as a final course, the rarely seen but much enjoyed slightly spicy Korean style egg drop soup.

From my cellar: 1990 Chateau d’Yquem. Parker 99. An extraordinary effort, Yquem’s 1990 is a rich and fabulously superb, sweet wine. This wine also possesses lots of elegance and finesse. The wine’s medium gold color is accompanied by an exceptionally sweet nose of honeyed tropical fruits, peaches, coconut, and apricots. High quality, subtle toasty oak is well-integrated. The wine is massive on the palate, with layers of intensely ripe botrytis-tinged, exceptionally sweet fruit. Surprisingly well-integrated acidity, and a seamless, full-bodied power and richness have created a wine of remarkable harmony and purity. Certainly it is one of the richest Yquems I have ever tasted, with 50-100 years of potential longevity. An awesome Yquem!

Toto serves homemade ice creams and sorbets as dessert.

So chaotic was this giant night that they brought out all five flavors on each plate and just placed them about the tables. I like the ice creams better than the sorbets here. The white chocolate was fantastic. Still, it’s all great.

Chef/Owner Kaz Oyama on the right. Both parties are partaking of my D’Yquem.

And this place IS all about the beef, which is arguably some of the best I’ve ever had. Certainly the best yakiniku/Korean BBQ I’ve ever had. There is a perfect tenderness to every cut that’s fairly transcendant. I’m not even that much of a steak fan — but I’d take this stuff any time over even a spectacular cut from Mastros or Cut. The food here does not vary much from visit to visit. There is no menu. The quality however is utterly consistant. So while it isn’t an everyday sort of dining experience, perhaps once every 6-9 months, I love to return for my fix.

This was a spectacular evening — really, truly, deeply epic. It was about 5 hours of mind boggling wines and crazy beef.

The Wines of Night 2

The next day a further 18 or so Hedonists returned for the exact same meal, but as they brought their own wines (ours being liver food at that point), I light them here too. I didn’t catch 100% of the wines. Missing are the 96 Sassicia, 01 Gaja , 97 Solaia and probably more.

1986 Ducru Beaucaillou. Parker 90-92. At 16 years of age, this wine continues to taste more like a 5 to7-year-old Bordeaux. The color is a handsome dark ruby with just a bit of pink at the edge. The wine exhibits sweet red and black currant fruit intermixed with wet stones, spice, and flowers. Medium-bodied and still moderately tannic, but very concentrated, this firmly structured, slightly austere wine has tremendous upside to it. By the way, this was the first vintage where I began to notice on some bottles the wet cement/damp cardboard aromas that were far more increasingly evident in the subsequent vintages, 1987, 1988, 1989, and 1990. Interestingly, the last five times I have tasted the 1986 Ducru-Beaucaillou, they were totally pristine bottles.

1990 Figeac. Parker 91-94. One of Bordeaux’s most schizophrenic properties, as disappointing as Figeac’s 1989 has turned out, the 1990 is fabulous. This property has not made a wine as rich as the 1990 since 1982. In contrast to the 1989, the 1990 is a great Figeac, potentially a richer, more complete and complex wine than the 1982. The 1990 exhibits a saturated dark purple color (somewhat atypical for Figeac), and a gorgeous nose of olives, fruitcake, jammy black fruits, minerals, and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, with gobs of glycerin-imbued, sweet, jammy fruit, this wine is nicely buttressed by moderate tannin and adequate acidity. Fleshy and rich, as well as elegant and complex, it is approachable because of the wine’s sweet fruit, but it promises even more pleasure with 2-4 more years of bottle age; it will last for 20 years. I predict the 1990 Figeac will have one of the most exotic and compelling aromatic profiles of the 1990s. It is a terrific wine!

1982 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Parker 100. One of the monumental wines of the last century is the 1982 Pichon Lalande. Since bottling, it has flirted with perfection, and was a sprinter out of the gate, which gave rise to questions about how quickly it would begin its decline. However, at age 27, it retains all its glossy, rich, flamboyant cassis fruit, chocolaty, berry jam-like notes, and plenty of earthy, foresty flavors. This is a full-bodied, extravagantly rich Pichon Lalande seemingly devoid of acidity and tannin, but the wine is incredibly well-balanced and pure. It is an amazing effort!

1985 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande. Parker 90-91. Fully mature, this wine shows some pink at the edge, a sweet nose of herb-tinged cherries and black currants intermixed with dusty notes and new oak. The wine is medium-bodied, elegant, very flattering, and perfumed. It does not have the weight, depth, or dimensions of the top vintages, but is quite seductive.

1982 Certan de May. Parker 92-98. A murky, dense, opaque garnet color is followed by spectacular aromatics of roasted herbs, smoked meats, cedar, prunes, black cherries, and black currants. Rich, powerful, and full-bodied, with a thick, unctuous texture, considerable fat and glycerin, and dazzling concentration, Certan de May has not produced a wine of such intensity, thickness, and aging potential since their 1949, 1948, 1947, and 1945.

1961 Château Brane-Cantenac. RJ Wine 93. This looks fully mature. Initially there are some sandalwood notes on the nose, then some high tones. The palate is open, and nice and clean with some acidity lending a freshness, but nowhere near that of the Giscours. It’s a tiny bit dried out, but there is still some good black fruit in there on the palate. Returning to this later, it was becoming very secondary and faded on both the nose and the palate.

2000 Du Tertre. Parker 91. A dense purple color is followed by layers of concentrated blackberry fruit intertwined with damp earth, mushroom, and sweet, toasty barrique smells. With ripe tannin, medium to full body, a layered texture, and a concentrated, impressively endowed finish, this is the finest Du Tertre since their 1979. This is a property on the move … up!

1995 Chateau Rayas Fonsalette Cotes du Rhone. Parker 90. The 1995 Chateau Fonsalette Cotes du Rhone is a twenty-year wine that requires 4-5 years of cellaring. It exhibits a black/purple color, good acidity and tannin, a closed, dense, moderately tannic personality, exceptional richness, and a powerful, full-bodied finish. Yields of 30 hectoliters per hectare were slightly higher than the 15-20 achieved in 1996. This is a wine for those who cannot find or afford to purchase Rayas.

Grace family Cabernet Sauvignon (can’t read the vintage).

1996 Chapoutier Ermitage l’Ermite. Parker 99-100. One of the candidates for France’s wine of the vintage is unquestionably Chapoutier’s 1996 Hermitage l’Ermite. In October, 1997 I reported that this was a virtually perfect wine made from a small parcel of vines, believed to be over 100 years old, located close to the tiny white chapel owned by the Jaboulets on the highest part of the Hermitage Hill. Yields were a minuscule 9 hectoliters per hectare. Now that this wine is in bottle, it is unbelievable! Unfortunately, only 30 cases were exported to the United States. The wine boasts a saturated black/purple color, as well as a phenomenal nose of rose petals, violets, blackberries, cassis, and pain grille. In the mouth, it is phenomenally rich, with a viscous texture, and a multidimensional, layered finish that lasts for over a minute. Its purity, perfect equilibrium, and unbelievable volume and richness are the stuff of legends.

2010 Saxum Terry Hoage Vineyard. Parker 94+. Here in its first vintage, the 2010 Terry Hoage Vineyard bursts onto the palate with rich, dark fruit. The weight power and richness of Syrah comes through beautifully in the layered, sumptuous wine. Flowers, licorice, mint, tobacco and grilled herbs wrap around the finish. The 2010 boasts serious density and fabulous overall balance. It is terrific first effort. The blend is 46% Syrah, 33% Grenache and 21% Mourvedre.

1989 Marcel Deiss Riesling Bergheim.

1976 De Suduiraut. Parker 92. For me, the 1976 is the greatest Suduiraut of the seventies, and the only wine other than the 1989 that resembles the magnificent 1959 this property produced. Medium to dark amber/gold, this full-bodied, massive wine has a very intense bouquet of vanillin oak, ripe pineapples, and melted caramel. Very deep and viscous, this is a decadently opulent Suduiraut with enormous presence in the mouth.

About twice a year my Hedonist group takes over Totoraku. It serves a very refined version of Japanese Yakiniku, which is Beef BBQ originally from Korea but filtered through Japanese sensibility.

This time we “bought out” the whole restaurant, bringing 28 people and well over 30 wines of incredible quality. So popular is this event that at least 5 people had to be turned away for lack of space. Everyone brings a wine vetted by the group and the standard is very high at this event, basically close to 100 points, high pedigree, age, or some combination thereof. As you’ll see, we really tore it up and in terms of scale and wine this was the most epic Hedonist event yet.

The outside is basically a shell. The “Teriyaki House” has nothing to do with the food within, and the phone number is incorrect. The place is like a beef speakeasy!

At Hedonist events everyone brings a bottle of two of great wine. We open with this champagne.

2005 Agrapart & Fils Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Venus. Parker 96. The 2005 Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Venus is breathtaking in this vintage. It shows stunning depth, power and richness, all while retaining tons of freshness and minerality. Layers of flavor saturate the palate in this moving, vivid Champagne. The 2005 Venus may be the very best Champagne I have ever tasted from Agrapart. Venus is made from a tiny 0.3 hectare parcel in La Fosse originally planted in 1959. This vineyard has never been worked mechanically. Today it is farmed by hand and with the help of Venus, the horst for which the wine is named. The 2005 was fermented in 600-liter barrels and bottled with no dosage. Disgorged July 2011.

The only thing that really changes at Totoraku is this impressive looking appetizer spread. This is for four people. Everyone gets a bite sized bit of each.

Tender octopus with tomato. Like an eight-legged bruchetta.

Sockeye salmon wrapped in jicama, with avocado and a kind of soba.

Hard boiled qual egg stuffed with cod row and crab and maybe some sort of squash blossom. Tasted like a deviled egg!

Shrimp on radicchio with caviar.

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Baby asparagus in hollandaise.

Cucumber and jellyfish.

Smoked? Abalone and Japanese marinated root.

Little mini risotto balls.

Homemade black sesame tofu.

Nothing like starting with a first growth.

1978 Chateau Margaux. Parker 92. Although the 1978 is a more powerful, fuller-bodied style of Margaux, it is less charming and fruity than the 1979. The 1978’s nose has moved from one of ripe fruit and spicy oak, to tarry, truffle, earthy aromas that come across as slightly too masculine and meaty. Nevertheless, this is a rich, full-bodied, concentrated Margaux that only suffers in comparison with the great vintages produced under the Mentzelopoulos regime. Some of its rusticity may be due to tannins that were not totally ripe during the harvest. In any event, it remains one of the few great wines from the 1978 vintage. While I initially thought it would be fully mature within two decades of the vintage, it could still benefit from another 3-4 years of cellaring.

1966 Beychevelle. Parker 87. I have always felt this wine to be one of the more successful Medocs from the 1966 vintage. At a tasting in November the wine exhibited attractive cedary, herb, and cassis scents, medium-bodied, ripe flavors, fine balance, and soft tannin in the sweet, elegant finish. It is fully mature and unlikely to get any better – so why wait?

Chef Kaz and his assistant plating the food in the kitchen.

Beef carpaccio with special salt, flowers, and some onion family derivative. Very yummy. This is eaten raw.

1986 Mouton-Rothschild. Parker 100! Deep garnet-black colour. An incredible array of aromas on the nose: blackberry, black cherry, tobacco, espresso, leather, black olive and loam. The palate is absolutely seamless from first impression to finish, effortlessly building layers of complexity in the mouth and leading to a very long, earth and spice finish. I can’t see how this could possibly be improvement so have no alternative but concede perfection.

One of the wines of the night — as it should be.

1990 Haut Brion. Slumming at a mere Parker 98. In terms of the brilliant complexity and nobility of the aromatics, scorched earth, black currants, plums, charcoal, cedar, and spices, the 1990 offers an aromatic explosion that is unparalleled. It is always fascinating to taste this wine next to the 1989, which is a monumental effort, but much more backward and denser, without the aromatic complexity of the 1990. The 1990 put on weight after bottling, and is currently rich, full-bodied, opulent, even flamboyant by Haut Brion’s standards. It is an incredible expression of a noble terroir in a top vintage. While it has been fully mature for a number of years, it does not reveal any bricking at the edge, and I suspect it will stay at this level for another 10-15 years … but why wait? It is irresistible now.

Two kinds of beef sashimi, eaten nearly raw. On the left beef tataki (rib eye) and on the right (in the cup) beef throat sashimi. Also on the plate is a bit of Korean style hot sauce (the red stuff), some intensely strong garlic (yum) and micro julienned ginger.

The throat was very chewy, more about texture. The rib eye soft and more flavorful. All went well with the garlic and ginger — I particularly liked the garlic.1990 Angelus. Parker 98. Very deep garnet colored, this has quite an exotic nose of Chinese five spice and Chinese dried plums with underlying hints of black olives, licorice and sandalwood. The palate is full bodied and richly fruited with firm, fine tannins, crisp acid and a long finish.

2001 Angelus. Parker 93-94. A brilliant performance by Hubert de Bouard, the 2001 Angelus (6,250 cases) is a more restrained and delineated version of the 2000. It has shed much of its tannin, and seems far more evolved and open-knit than I thought prior to bottling. Its deep purple color is followed by a rich nose of creosote, charcoal, blackberries, plums, cassis, and espresso roast. Elegant, medium-bodied, and rich, with a measured ripeness and moderate structure in the pure, nicely proportioned finish, it is less massive than either the 2000 or 2003, yet is also beautifully put together.

A raw beef dish. Marinated raw beef is seen here with ginger, raw egg, cucumber, daikon, pine nuts, and something orange. Apparently, this is a Korean dish called Yukhoe. Actually, I’ve had it at Korean places, but in any case it’s delicious.

The elements are mixed together and then eaten. It’s hard to describe why it’s so good, but it is, with a very complex flavor and texture interplay.

1983 Grace Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon. 95 points. Very youthful fresh exciting. Great nose lengthy finish and soft tannins. It has aged wonderfully. Cork was in incredible shape and came out in one pull. amazing. Very little sediment.

1995 Cos d’Estournel (in magnum). Parker 95. A wine of extraordinary intensity and accessibility, the 1995 Cos d’Estournel is a sexier, more hedonistic offering than the muscular, backward 1996. Opulent, with forward aromatics (gobs of black fruits intermixed with toasty pain grille scents and a boatload of spice), this terrific Cos possesses remarkable intensity, full body, and layers of jammy fruit nicely framed by the wine’s new oak. Because of low acidity and sweet tannin, the 1995 will be difficult to resist young, although it will age for 2-3 decades.

We owned the place, fairly literally this night, filling it up.

1994 La Mission Haut Brion. Parker 92. This vintage again demonstrates what an extraordinary terroir La Mission-Haut-Brion possesses. It was not an easy year, with rain, flowering issues and uncooperative weather in the critical months of August and September, but the vineyard’s superb drainage and La Mission’s ability to produce fascinating aromatics even in difficult vintages triumphs again. Classic Graves aromas of charcoal, scorched earth, red and black fruits, truffles, graphite and melted tar emerge from this dark garnet/plum-colored 1994. In the mouth, there is some angularity and rustic tannins remaining, but they are not out of balance. With medium to full body as well as more depth than many of its peers, the wine appears to be close to full maturity. However, with this level of acidity and tannin, it is not likely to fall apart any time soon.

We switch up to Syrah with one of my favorite producers, Chapoutier.

1999 Chapoutier Cote Rotie la Mordoree. Parker 95. Chapoutier’s La Mordoree cuvee is produced from 75-80-year old Syrah vines planted in both the Cote Blonde and Cote Brune, aged in 100% new oak casks, and bottled with neither fining nor filtration. The 1999 Cote Rotie La Mordoree is the finest he has produced since the 1991 (two bottles drunk over the last six months confirm this fabulous wine’s potential as it is just now beginning to emerge from a cloak of tannin). The 1999 has closed down since its pre-bottling tasting. The color is an inky purple, and the wine is dense and powerful, with notes of smoky blackberries, creosote, and espresso. Concentrated flavors reveal high levels of tannin (surprising in view of last year’s report), and a rich, long, 45-second finish.

Beef tongue with salt.

Don’t put your tongue on the grill!

BBQ to perfect, and add a bit of scallions, then dip in lemon juice and enjoy. This is about the most tender tongue I’ve had (and I’ve had plenty). It’s still a dense slightly rubbery texture, but delicious.

Even bigger and better is Chapoutier’s flagship, and one of my favorite wines.

2004 Chapoutier Ermitage le Pavillon. Parker 91-94. All of the single vineyard Ermitages turned out as good as I had hoped, possibly even better. In short they are among the strongest wines one could hope for in this vintage. The 2004 Ermitage Le Pavillon is outstanding, but certainly not one of the most compelling wines Michel Chapoutier has made. It is dense, dark ruby/purple, and seems more austere and backward than the Le Meal, but I still think these are 15- to 20-year wines as opposed to the normal 50+ that the top vintages of these single vineyard Ermitages produce. Dense with black currant fruit intermixed with licorice, sweet blackberries, and white chocolate, this is an elegant, mid-weight Pavillon.

Filet Mignon with bell peppers, onions, and sisho pepper.

Filet on the grill.

Then we move on to a five-some of Guigal Cote Rotie’s including a full trio of the 1996s!

1987 Guigal Cote Rotie la Mouline. Parker 95. Guigal’s 1987 La Mouline is sensational. Considering the vintage, this must be the greatest wine produced in France in 1987. The color is a youthful purple, and the nose offers up sweet, pure aromas of jammy black raspberries, smoke, and honeysuckle, and vague whiffs of apricots. Thick, rich flavors coat the palate in a seamless, velvety-textured manner. This medium- to full-bodied, marvelously concentrated wine has no hard edges, and is the epitome of voluptuousness and sumptuousness. This has been a glorious La Mouline to drink since its birth, and it shows no signs of age.

2000 Guigal Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 93-95. The 2000 Cote Rotie La Landonne is the most powerful and primordial of the 2000 La La’s, not surprising given this cuvee’s telltale earthy, leathery characteristics that are intermixed with notes of truffles, licorice, blackberries, and pepper. Medium to full-bodied, with moderate tannin and good density.

Momotaro tomatoes with a vinaigrette. These are supposedly incredibly good tomatoes, as a hater, I didn’t try them. I think Oyama-san gets them from some special place in Orange Country.

1996 Guigal Cote Rotie la Mouline. Parker 93-96. The 1996 Cote Rotie La Mouline possesses the highest percentage of Viognier (17-18%) Guigal has ever included in this offering. The deep ruby/purple color is accompanied by a superb bouquet of spice box, cedar, leather, honeysuckle, and jammy black fruits. It is remarkably tender and soft for a vintage that produced high acid wines. Medium-bodied, elegant, and complex, it is one of the more forward and evolved La Moulines.

Overall, the Turque was probably the best with the Landonne being a little over structured and the Mouline the softest. Still, all three were delicious.

The “salad.” Cucumbers, carrots, daikon.

They are served with this spicy sweet miso dip. The vegetables do help to move along the fat and protein heavy meat.

2004 Clos des Papes Chateauneuf du Pape (in magnum). Parker 95. The 2004 Clos des Papes Chateauneuf du Pape has turned out to be one of the finest wines of the vintage, tipping the scales at just over 15% alcohol and actually coming a few tenths of a degree within the 2003 and 2005 in terms of power and alcoholic degrees. The wine displays gorgeously sweet black raspberries, kirsch liqueur, and resiny, loamy soil notes. Medium to full-bodied, this blend of 65% Grenache, 20% Mourvedre, 10% Syrah, and the rest some of the other red varietals that are permitted, is performing beautifully and is certainly one of the vintage’s superstars. The wine is full-bodied, powerful, rich, and as accessible as the 2003, but slightly fresher and not as muscular and thick. Nevertheless, this is a top effort from the father and son team of Paul and Vincent Avril.

2009 Delas Freres Cote Rotie la Landonne. Parker 98+. As I reported last year, the black/purple-tinged 2009 Cote Rotie La Landonne is an extraordinary effort. Made in a more open-knit, exuberant, flamboyant style, it possesses many of the same characteristics as the 2010, but with silkier tannins and lots of glycerin, smoked meat, violet, black currant, licorice, pepper and charcuterie characteristics. With super intensity, a full-bodied mouthfeel, lower acidity than the 2010 and sweeter tannin.

Outside rib eye with special salt and garlic.

The outside rib eye on the grill.

2006 Sine Qua Non Raven Series (Grenache). Parker 98. 2006 Ravens Series (# 6 and 7 Grenache): This blend of 90% Grenache and 10% Syrah, largely from the 11 Confessions Vineyard, with a small amount from Bien Nacido, spent 21 months in barrel. It is really strutting its stuff now, and showing even better than my original note predicted in August of 2009. The wine has loads of meat, licorice, smoke, charcoal and graphite, as well as huge peppery, blackberry and black cherry notes. Full-bodied, with great acidity, nicely integrated tannin, an admirable mouthfeel and tremendous length.

2007 Sine Qua Non Labels (Syrah). Parker 98+. The recently released 2007 Syrah Labels (89% Syrah, 7% Grenache, and 4% Viognier) comes from the 11 Confessions Estate Vineyard (57%), a small amount from the home estate vineyard in Oak View called Cumulus, and the rest from purchased fruit grown in the White Hawk Vineyard in Los Alamos and the Bien Nacido Vineyard in Santa Maria. A sensational effort, it is performing even better out of bottle than it did from barrel. An opaque purple color is accompanied by beautiful notes of charcoal, acacia flowers, blueberries, blackberries, graphite, and subtle smoke. With great fruit, tremendous texture, and full-bodied power, it is locked and loaded.

Just my little collection of 6 wines at a time. I’ve learned to pour shallow.

2002 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select Stags Leap. Parker 100. One of the world’s greatest wines year in and year out is Shafer’s Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. The 2002 was a candidate for perfection the first time I tasted it. The estate keeps this cuvee 32 months in 100% new French oak, so I had a number of chances to see it from barrel. Moreover, I purchased the wine for my own cellar and have had it at least a half dozen times since bottling, and it just gets more profound with each sip. This wine is beyond belief for how it balances its extraordinary richness, purity of personality, and the elegance and finesse of the Stags Leap District with massive cassis fruit, spring flowers, toasty oak and earth. The wine is fabulously concentrated, multidimensional and built like a skyscraper, yet nothing is out of place. The wood, alcohol, acidity and tannin are all in perfect balance. This offering is a tribute to the greatness of Napa Valley, which was recognized by men and women hundreds of years ago, and to the modern day genius of the Shafer family. This 2002 has 50 years of life ahead of it – but why wait!

2003 Shafer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select. Parker 95. Celebrating 30 years of consistent quality and both critical and commercial success, this family run winery remains one of the most admirable operations in California. The Shafers have had tremendous success with their Relentless, which was first released in 1999. A blend of 80% Syrah and 20% Petite Sirah that spends 32 months in 100% new French oak, it is a remarkably consistent offering that rarely displays much oak. The Syrah is from Napa’s cool-climate Oak Knoll sector. One of the world’s most prodigious Cabernet Sauvignons is Shafer’s 2,000-case cuvee called Hillside Select. Always 100% Cabernet Sauvignon aged in 100% new French oak for a whopping 32 months, it boasts a gorgeous track record dating back to the early nineties, and just about every recent vintage has flirted with perfection.

Inside rib eye.

The inside rib eye on the grill.

2010 Page Springs Cellars Syrah Clone 99 Colibri Vineyard. 89 points. Lots of earth, bramble and spice with white pepper as advertised. Definitely a bold wine that could benefit from some cellar time. Decanted and enjoyed over the course of about 6 hours. Every glass offered something different. Killer finish… I could go quite a while without taking another sip because I was still tasting it for so long after I swallowed. Overall this is a wine with incredible depth and great evolution. Wish I had another bottle. Sold out!

1996 Henschke Shiraz Hill of Grace. Parker 92. Deep garnet-brick in color, the 1996 Hill of Grace reveals a nose redolent of cherry pie, incense, Chinese five spice, soy and cigars. Very spicy in the mouth, it has balanced acid and a medium level of chewy tannins before finishing long. It is mature now but no rush to drink.

You have to special order the lamb, which like all of Kaz’s meats, is pretty wonderful.

Grilling up the chops.

1996 Clarendon Hills Astralis (Shiraz). Parker 97. The blockbuster 1996 Astralis Syrah is the most Hermitage-like. Its dark plum/purple color is followed by a big, sweet kiss of roasted meats, creme de cassis, blackberries, pepper, and forest floor. Dense with superb purity, full-bodied power, and beautiful balance, it is the only Astralis we tasted that exhibited a strong tertiary/secondary aromatic development.

“Special” beef. I think it was a form of sirloin. It was certainly good, very salted.

And finally for desert, the 1951 Massandra white port. An unusual dessert wine from the town of Massandra in the Crimea which was an ancient Greek settlement. The Tzar had a palace here and for centuries they made special wine for the royal family. Raisin in a glass, this particular vintage must have been served up to Stalin!

It comes packed in genuine styrofoam!

Sans label. But it was delicious.

Toto serves homemade ice creams and sorbets as dessert.

So chaotic was this giant night that they brought out all five flavors on each plate and just placed them about the tables. I like the ice creams better than the sorbets here. The white chocolate was fantastic. Still, it’s all great.

Chef/Owner Kaz Oyama on the left, Hedonist organizer Yarom on the right. Observe the white haze of smoke.

And this place IS all about the beef, which is arguably some of the best I’ve ever had. Certainly the best yakiniku/Korean BBQ I’ve ever had. There is a perfect tenderness to every cut that’s fairly transcendant. I’m not even that much of a steak fan — but I’d take this stuff any time over even a spectacular cut from Mastros or Cut. The food here does not vary much from visit to visit. There is no menu. The quality however is utterly consistant. So while it isn’t an everyday sort of dining experience, perhaps once every 6-9 months, I love to return for my fix.

This was a spectacular evening — really, truly, deeply epic. It was about 5 hours of mind boggling wines and crazy beef.

The outside is basically a shell. The “Teriyaki House” has nothing to do with the food within, and the phone number is incorrect. The place is like a beef speakeasy!

At Hedonist events everyone brings a bottle of two of great wine. We open with this champagne. The NV Brut Rose is a pretty, gracious wine. Freshly cut roses, red berries and spices take shape nicely in the glass as the wine shows off its understated, timeless personality. Billecart-Salmon’s NV Brut Rose is a reliably tasty wine.

The only thing that really changes at Totoraku is this impressive looking appetizer spread. This is for four people. Everyone gets a bite sized bit of each.

This older 1984 Grace Family Cab was a surprisingly fresh entrée into the world of reds.

Beef carpaccio with special salt, flowers, and some onion family derivative. Very yummy. This is eaten raw.

We moved up to a more recent vintage of the same wine. Parker 90. “The 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon (260 cases) offers plenty of up-front sweet black currant fruit mixed with toasty new oak and mineral characteristics. It is medium-bodied, plump, and accessible, revealing good fruit in its subtle, restrained personality.”

Two kinds of beef sashimi, eaten nearly raw. On the left beef tataki (rib eye) and on the right (in the cup) beef throat sashimi. Also on the plate is a bit of Korean style hot sauce (the red stuff), some intensely strong garlic (yum) and micro julienned ginger.

The throat was very chewy, more about texture. The rib eye soft and more flavorful. All went well with the garlic and ginger — I particularly liked the garlic.

A new release from Vega Sicilia, Spain’s most renowned winery, is the 1995 Valbuena (magnum). A plum/ruby color is followed by aromas of sweet black fruits intermixed with licorice, earth, and spicy oak. Full-bodied, with excellent concentration, a juicy, layered texture, and fine purity, it is forward and plush.

A raw beef dish. Marinated raw beef is seen here with ginger, raw egg, cucumber, daikon, pine nuts, and something orange. Apparently, this is a Korean dish called Yukhoe. Actually, I’ve had it at Korean places, but in any case it’s delicious.

The elements are mixed together and then eaten. It’s hard to describe why it’s so good, but it is, with a very complex flavor and texture interplay.

One of my favorites. Parker 99+! “The 1989 has taken forever to shed its formidable tannins, but what a great vintage of Lynch Bages! I would rank it at the top of the pyramid although the 1990, 2000, and down the road, some of the more recent vintages such as 2005, 2009 and 2010 should come close to matching the 1989’s extraordinary concentration and undeniable aging potential. Its dense purple color reveals a slight lightening at the edge and the stunning bouquet offers classic notes of creme de cassis, subtle smoke, oak and graphite. Powerful and rich with some tannins still to shed at age 22, it is still a young adolescent in terms of its evolution and will benefit from another 4-5 years of cellaring.”

Beef tongue with salt.

Don’t put your tongue on the grill!

BBQ to perfect, and add a bit of scallions, then dip in lemon juice and enjoy. This is about the most tender tongue I’ve had (and I’ve had plenty). It’s still a dense slightly rubbery texture, but delicious.

Parker 89, “The 1988 has an aroma of exotic spices, minerals, blackcurrants, and oak. In the mouth, it is a much firmer, tougher, more obviously tannic wine than the 1989. It is a beautifully made 1988 that will last 20-30 years, but the astringency of the tannins is slightly troubling. Patience will be a necessity for purchasers of this wine.”

I agree with Parker, this was full of heavy duty Bordeaux-style sour tannins. Not really a very pleasant effort.

Momotaro tomatoes with a vinaigrette. These are supposedly incredibly good tomatoes, as a hater, I didn’t try them. I think Oyama-san gets them from some special place in Orange Country.

The “salad.” Cucumbers, carrots, daikon.

They are served with this spicy sweet miso dip. The vegetables do help to move along the fat and protein heavy meat.

Parker 95, “There are 475 cases of the 2007 IX Syrah Estate, which offers up flowery, roasted meat, balsamic, tar, and blackberry characteristics in a full-bodied format. The wine reveals sweet tannin, and layers of fruit, including a note of lavender that emerges as the wine sits in the glass. It should drink well for a decade.”

We also had a Colgin Cab, but I can’t remember what year and I missed taking a picture of it.

More meat on the grill.

From my cellar: Parker 96, “The 1995 is spectacular. When Emmanuel Reynaud said it was evolving quickly, in essence repudiating this vintage, I immediately drank two bottles of this glorious elixir. It does not reveal the over-ripeness of the 1990, bringing to mind a hypothetical blend of the great 1989 and 1978. Deeply-colored and still young, with black currant/creme de cassis-like characteristics, huge body, yet great structure and delineation, this is a classic Rayas that is totally different than the 1990. It should continue to improve in the bottle and may merit an even higher score. While it can be drunk now, it will be even better with 3-4 years of cellaring.”

Outside rib eye with special salt and garlic.

Parker 94+, “A very great wine, the dark garnet-hued 1980. Still a young wine at age 29, it exhibits massive earthy, meaty, bacon fat notes intermixed with notions of scorched earth, blackberries, currants, pepper, and spice. Full and rich with slightly rustic tannins, it has a good 20 years of life ahead of it.

Grange, Penfolds’ flagship wine, is, by many accounts, the most renowned and world-famous wine produced in Australia, and these six vintages from my cellar all acquitted themselves well. These wines are almost always Shiraz, but many vintages include less than 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, and there are cross-appellations blends from vineyards in the Barossa and McLaren Vale.”

Inside rib eye.

Parker 95-98, “The 1998 Syrah E-Raised is great stuff. The blended Syrah comes from different vineyard sources, primarily the Alban Vineyard in San Luis Obispo, and Bien Nacido and Stolpman Vineyards in Santa Barbara. These wines are always amusingly named (Black and Blue, Against the Wall, Imposter McCoy). All the components were tasted, and even the least impressive cuvee was tipping my olfactory and sensual charts at 93 and 94 points, with the finest cuvees ranging up near perfect 97 or 98 point totals. It is black-colored, jammy and super-intense with awesome concentration, terrific, chewy, explosive flavors of blackberries, cherries, and cassis interfused with creosote, pepper, and vanillin. All the cuvees are gorgeously pure, thick, and rich. As they sit in the glass, notes of roasted coffee, licorice, smoke, and barbecue spices emerge, giving them another dimension of complexity. It is hard to make a prediction at this point, given how sensational previous vintages have been, but it would not surprise me to see the 1998 Syrah turn out to be the finest yet from Sine Qua Non.”

I’ve been to Toto at least 10 times, but this is the first time I’ve ever had the lamb, which like all of Kaz’s meats, is pretty wonderful.

This was really a loaner from a neighboring table, but we drank some anyway. 1,000 thanks!

Parker 96-100, “During its first 10-12 years of life, this was a perfect wine, but it now seems to be in a stage where the fruit is still present, but the previous exuberance and intensity have faded slightly. There is plenty of amber at the edge, and this medium to full-bodied wine shows notes of menthol, cedar, spice box, plums, and black cherries. Owners of 750 ml bottles should plan on consuming it over the next 4-6 years. Magnums should be less evolved, and merit a score 4 to 6 points higher.”

King crab legs.

From my cellar: Parker 96, “What sumptuous pleasures await those who purchase either the 1996 or 1995 Pichon-Lalande. It is hard to choose a favorite, although the 1995 is a smoother, more immediately sexy and accessible wine. It is an exquisite example of Pichon-Lalande with the Merlot component giving the wine a coffee/chocolatey/cherry component to go along with the Cabernet Sauvignon’s and Cabernet Franc’s complex blackberry/cassis fruit. The wine possesses an opaque black/ruby/purple color, and sexy, flamboyant aromatics of pain grille, black fruits, and cedar. Exquisite on the palate, this full-bodied, layered, multidimensional wine should prove to be one of the vintage’s most extraordinary success stories.”

“Special” beef. I think it was a form of sirloin. It was certainly good, very salted.

Another loaner (they sure had great wine). Parker 98, “A magnificent example of Chateau Margaux and one of the most tannic, backward Margauxs of the last 50 years, the 1986 continues to evolve at a glacial pace. The color is still a dense ruby/purple with just a hint of lightening at the rim. With several hours of aeration, the aromatics become striking, with notes of smoke, toast, creme de cassis, mineral, and white flowers. Very full-bodied, with high but sweet tannin, great purity, and a very masculine, full-bodied style, this wine should prove nearly immortal in terms of its aging potential. It is beginning to budge from its infantile stage and approach adolescence.”

Special beef on the grill.

And the final loaner. This was a total stunner. Parker 100, “For the fourth time, the Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee da Capo has been produced, and for the fourth time, it has received a perfect score although I might back off the 2000’s perfect score based on the fact that it seems to be more of an upper-ninety point wine than pure perfection these days. The 2003 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee da Capo has distanced itself ever so slightly from the 2003 Cuvee Reservee. Before bottling and immediately after bottling, these two wines’ differences were not as evident. At present the Capo reveals that extra level of flavor, power, complexity and richness. It is a big wine (16.1% alcohol – less than in the 1998, but more than in the 2000 and 2007) boasting a dark plum/garnet color as well as a stunning bouquet of aged beef intermixed with pepper, herbes de Provence, and steak au poivre. This unctuously textured, full-bodied Chateauneuf possesses enormous body, huge flavors and sweet, velvety tannins. Still youthful, it has not yet begun to close down, and I’m not sure it ever will given this unusual vintage. It is a modern day classic that should continue to provide provocative as well as compelling drinking for 20-30+ years.”

Skirt steak.

This is a tasty but sometimes tough cut. Not here, soft as butter.

t
An unusual dessert wine from the town of Massandra in the Crimea which was an ancient Greek settlement. The Tzar had a palace here and for centuries they made special wine for the royal family. Raisin in a glass, this particular vintage must have been served up to Stalin!
Cool box.

And its own wine “passport.”

Toto serves homemade ice creams and sorbets as dessert.

Lychee and pistachio.

White chocolate and expresso. I like the ice creams better than the sorbets here. The white chocolate was fantastic.

Blueberry.

Chef/Owner Kaz Oyama on the left, Hedonist organizer Yarom on the right with the cigar.

And this place IS all about the beef, which is arguably some of the best I’ve ever had. Certainly the best yakiniku/Korean BBQ I’ve ever had. There is a perfect tenderness to every cut that’s fairly transcendant. I’m not even that much of a steak fan — but I’d take this stuff any time over even a spectacular cut from Mastros or Cut. The food here does not vary much from visit to visit. There is no menu. The quality however is utterly consistant. So while it isn’t an everyday sort of dining experience, perhaps once every 6-9 months, I love to return for my fix.

This was a spectacular evening with some really great meat, amazing wines, and good company!

Back in July I joined up with the “Hedonists” Meetup group for a spectacular food and wine (and all around overindulgent) evening. No sooner had I recovered when we set out again, this time to “trendy” Hollywood steakhouse STK. These are big dinners, 12 people, and everyone brings one (or more) bottles of wine. They’re vetted too by the host so every bottle is either old, highly rated, or both.

The space is chic and modern. Above is the La Cienega entrance.

At Hedonism events the wines are always spectacular. We start out with this rose champagne. “The NV Brut Grand Rose comes across as very Gosset in its bright, piercing minerality. This is one of the driest Roses in the market, and truth to be told, it takes a special palate to truly appreciate this wine. Frankly, a touch more sweetness might not be a bad thing.”

These look like Glazed Pop’ems, but they’re savory. And that sauce is pretty much a under-spiced chimichurri.

More my taste, Parker 92, “You can’t help but smile when you taste the 2002 Chassagne-Montrachet en Remilly. Its flowery nose leads to a fat, deep, medium-bodied personality. Broad, rich, and plush, it coats the palate with lilies, sweet minerals, and pears. Drink this concentrated, generous, pleasing wine over the next 6 years.”

Some oysters on the halfshell.

“Poached pears and spiced apples can be found in the superb aromatics of the 2000 Nuits-St.-Georges La Perriere (white). Medium to full-bodied, plump, and fat, this is an exceedingly ripe wine, crammed with loads of pears, anise, and toast flavors. It is harmonious, seamless, and reveals an admirably long, pure, and delineated finish.”

“TUNA TARTARE. soy emulsion – avocado – taro chips.”

I brought this puppy, which is just beginning to open up. Parker 94, “Gaja’s 1997 Barbaresco is undoubtedly the finest he has yet made. An exquisite effort, it boasts a dense ruby/purple color in addition to an extraordinary nose of black cherry liqueur, smoke, licorice, mineral, and floral aromas. The wine is full-bodied, opulent, and loaded with fruit. Despite its precocious nature, there is abundant tannin, and thus 3-4 years of cellaring is required. It should age effortlessly for 25 years.”

“The 1966 Ausone, tasted twice from well-stored bottles in Bordeaux, this wine reveals an amber/rust overtone to its medium garnet color. At first the nose offers attractive faded fruit, old leather, and dried herb-like aromas. In the mouth, the wine possesses sweetness on the attack that quickly faded to reveal astringency, harshness, and a medium-bodied, hollow personality.”

“The 1995 Lynch Bages, a dense ruby/purple hue is accompanied by reticent, restrained aromatics suggesting earth, herbs and subtle fruit. The wine hits the palate with a brutal, tannic overlay, but behind that are impressive levels of black and red fruits. As is the case with many 1995s, the wine’s structural components still dominate, which makes one wonder if these cuvees will ever shed enough tannin to be charming and enjoyable to drink. Certainly depth, weight and richness are all present, but the tannins remain elevated and somewhat foreboding.”

“BEEF TARTAR. black truffle – sliced radish – soy caramel.”

Parker 99! “The late Michel Delon always thought that this was the greatest vintage he had produced. We often tasted it side by side with the 1982, because I always preferred the latter vintage. Of course, the two vintages are quite different in style, with the 1986 a monument to classicism, with great tannin, extraordinary delineation, and a huge, full-bodied nose of sweet, ripe cassis fruit intermixed with vanilla, melon, fruitcake, and a multitude of spices. The wine has always been phenomenally concentrated, yet wonderfully fresh and vigorous. The wine still seems young, yet it is hard to believe it is not close to full maturity. It is a great example of Leoville Las Cases, and another compelling reason to take a serious look at the top Cabernet Sauvignon-based Medocs of 1986.”

Parker 96, “Sitting next to my former colleague, Pierre Antoine Rovani, at one of the tastings, he commented that he didn’t like the striking green note in the aromatics of this wine, which I didn’t detect at all, and a subsequent bottle at another tasting did not reveal it either. I do think there is a hint of bay leaf and a meatiness to it. In short, I find this to be a spectacular Pichon Lalande. Dense purple in color, with loads of coffee, mocha, creme de cassis, and chocolate notes, this is a somewhat unusual blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, and a whooping 10% Petit Verdot, with a little bit of Cabernet Franc. The Petit Verdot certainly gives the wine more of a tapenade, floral note, which I think can be interpreted by some as herbal. This is a rich, opulent, stunning Pichon Lalande that is beginning to drink beautifully, yet should continue to improve for at least another 10-15 years and last 30 or more years.”

“Bone-in filet with crabmeat and bordelaise.” Certainly a great steak, and bordelaise makes EVERYTHING better.

Parker 99! “A compelling example of this noble terroir in the northeastern sector of Napa Valley, the 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard still has a dense purple color and possesses a seamless personality with spectacular notes of licorice, incense, black raspberries, black currants, crushed rock, and spring flowers. Stunningly full-bodied, multi-layered, with great purity and expression, this fabulous wine is still youthful but very accessible, as the tannins are velvety and well-integrated. This wine will keep aging beautifully for a minimum of another quarter century. Bravo!”

There were also two fantastic Insignias (99-100 pointers). These evenings get chaotic and it was hard to snap photos of all the late arrivals. I was more concerned with pouring myself a glass!

“Bone-in porterhouse.” Have a little beef!

Parker 98, “There are 2,600 cases of the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Eisele Vineyard. As I indicated last year, this is a fabulous effort that manages to conceal its 100% new French oak aging. Its dense ruby/purple color is followed by beautiful aromas of blueberries, black currants, acacia flowers, licorice, and spice. The tannins are softer than I remember, but this is certainly one of the vintage’s most extraordinary wines. Full-bodied with a seamless integration of tannin, acidity, alcohol, and wood, it is exceptionally pure and full as well as impeccably balanced. The impression is one of elegance allied with substantial flavor authority. It can be drunk now or cellared for 25+ years.”

Some other cut of steak, can’t remember which.

“New York strip with salt.”

Parker 90, “The classy, rich, well-focused 1992 Cabernet Sauvignon possesses a Chateau Margaux-like fragrance and personality. Neither overblown nor excessively extracted, it is a beautifully made, pure, cassis-dominated wine with well-integrated toasty new oak. No component part dominates, and the wine exhibits no hard edges. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and authoritatively flavored, this Cabernet is approachable now but promises to age gracefully for 12-20 years.”

Lobster anyone?

“LOCAL HALIBUT. brown butter – capers- lemon – fingerling potatoes.”

1983 Mount Mary Vineyard Cabernet.

Some stellar mac & cheese.

Something healthy? Except for the butter!

“Parmesan truffle fries.”

“Sweet corn pudding.” We took to calling this stuff “corn porn” it was so good.

Parker 96, “Deep garnet colour. The nose is just beginning to evolve into musky, dried plum and raisin aromas with whiffs of tree bark, nutmeg, cumin and cloves. The palate is seriously big and voluptuous with medium to high acidity and a medium to firm level of fine tannins. Very long finish.”

Parker 86, “Every bit as good as the more open-knit and expressive 1976, the 1975 is lighter and more typically Coutet in its proportions, with a graceful, fresh taste, very good concentration, and years of evolution ahead.” This Barsac might not be Chateau D’Yquem, but it has matured to be a unique amber honeyed beast of its own.

“STRAWBERRY RHUBARB CROSTATA. lemon sherbet – black pepper caramel.”

Fresh fruit.

Foodwise, STK is very good, perhaps not quite so good as Mastros or as inventive as Cut, but very good nonetheless. In addition, they are considerably cheaper than Mastros (which can be quite punishing on the wallet). And as a further bonus, they played 80s pop hits exclusively the whole evening, which is so my taste (having gone to high school in the 80s). When I walked in Tears for Fears “Shout” was just starting up. Perfect!

The overall evening was spectacular. The place treated us really well with swift and friendly service you hardly noticed. Plus, there was the excellent company and all our amazing wines!

And with a blast the ThanksGavin 2011 is off. Canonically, in a tradition developed over the last twenty years, the gavin Thanksgiving weekend is defined by four major meals. The Wednesday night dinner (out somewhere, usually in downtown Philly), the main event on Thursday, the Friday night dinner at my cousin Abbe’s, and the Saturday deli brunch. For this year’s kickoff a downtown intimate French restaurant was chosen.

NOTE: Technically, this is the ThanksGavin/Flitter as my grandparents had two daughters and so they have different married names. But for simplicity I’ll usually just say ThanksGavin.

A light sancerre to begin. Like many Philly restaurants Bibou doesn’t have a liquor license — perfect pour moi — as I can bring without corkage!

Every year I drag out at least a case of wine from my cellar. My favorite opener varietal, real Pinot Noir. the Parker 93. “An assortment of candied cherries explode from the glass of the 2002 Nuits-St.-Georges Les Perrieres. This seductive wine’s character is drenched in black cherry syrup, rocks, and earth. Medium-bodied, it has outstanding depth, concentration, and a long, expressive finish that reveals copious quantities of ripe tannin. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2018.”

The menu.

Very nice bread and butter from France.
An uncooked preview of the bone marrow special.

A blockbuster Spanish wine. Parker 94. “The 2007 Valdemuz is 100% Prieto Picudo from vines ranging in age from 100-115 years. For this cuvee 20% whole bunches were utilized with aging for 18 months in new French oak. A glass-coating opaque purple color, it offers up a splendid aromatic array of pain grille, graphite, espresso, truffle, black cherry, and blackberry. Dense, ripe, and concentrated, on the palate it is velvety textured and virtually seamless. This lengthy offering will evolve for another 5-7 years and provide big-time pleasure through 2027 if not longer.”

“Foie gras Duo. Foie gras crème brulée & Seared foie gras with caramelized Seckel pear flavored with lavender.” The left hand side was a fairly traditional prep for foie — but excellent with great texture and a nice meaty / slightly spiced flavor to the fruit. The right had good texture, and was nice, but was more like a custard.

“Soupe de céleri. Celeriac soup, chestnut purée, poached celeriac in Earl Grey tea.” One of those really good lots of creme with a hint of vegetable soups.

Parker gives this a 92, but I’d put it more like at 95-96. “The 1995 Hermitage La Sizeranne is performing even better out of bottle than it did immediately prior to bottling. It is a full-bodied, dense ruby/purple-colored wine with a sweet, smoky, chocolate, cassis, and tar-scented nose, great fruit intensity, full body, a layered texture, sweet tannin, and good grip. It should be cellared for a minimum of 4-5 years, and will keep for 15-20.”

A blockbuster argentine wine. As good as I’ve had from there. Parker 94. “Flechas de Los Andes’ 2006 Gran Corte spent 17 months in new French oak. It is opaque purple-colored with legs that ooze down the glass. The aromatics are brooding but expressive with notes of pain grille, pencil lead, spice box, lavender, black cherry, and plum. Opulent, with glossy fruit, this dense, rich effort conceals significant underlying structure. This intense, powerful, lengthy wine demands a minimum of 5-7 years of cellaring and will be at its best from 2015 to 2030.”

The dessert menu.

Classic “Creme brûlée, flavored with vanilla and tobacco leaves.”

French press coffee.

“Mimi’s chocolate cake, caramel sauce.”

“Floating Island with homemade praline and goat milk creme anglais.” This was probably the best Floating Island I’ve ever had. The texture was lighter than air with a very nice nutty flavor.

“Fresh quince pie.” A bit of figs on the side.

“Berry ice cream.”

And to finish, some macaroons and meringues. Both very good.

This was a very good meal. Classically French, yet with a slightly updated palette and a deft touch. If you are in Philadelphia I highly recommend.

A couple of years ago my office was in Culver City, and the restaurant revolution there was already well under way. But the trend continues apace with Lukshon, a sort of re-imagined southern Asian (vaguely Chinese — sort of) joint opened by the same owners as adjacent Father’s Office. I’ve been itching to try it for better on six months and we finally got the Foodie Club together for an impromptu meeting.

The modern interior space. There is also a generous and attractive patio.

The menu. We ordered about two thirds of it, for eight people, all family style.

Lukshon does not allow corkage. I didn’t know that and Foodie Club co-president EP and I hauled four bottles to the table. I was skeptical at first of the small wine list too, as it’s devoid of big name offerings. But with some help from the Sommelier we put together what turned out to be a very enjoyable trio.

We had the 2010, but the 2009 got 92 from parker, “Ollivier’s 2009 Muscadet de Sevre et Maine Sur Lie Clos des Briords is as perfumed and lusciously-fruited a wine of its genre as you are likely to encounter, though that by no means precludes depth of mineral character. Scents of pear, clover, Persian melon, and fennel inform the nose and migrate to a buoyant yet expansive, mouthwateringly juicy palate tinged with a shimmering crystalline sense of minerality characteristic for this cuvee. This sensational value finishes with an uncanny combination of soothing refreshment and vibrancy. It is apt to be even more ravishing in another year or so and be worth following for at least 3-4.”

This was a very interesting wine. Old fashioned — like 2,000 years old fashioned. Evidently, it’s kept in amphorae, large greek/roman style terra-cotta vessels. While a white, it was so unfiltered as to be almost cloudy. But damn good.

“kurobuta pork ribs. spicy chicory coffee bbq sauce.” The meat just fell of the bones. A bit of char. Seriously good ribs, what cheap Chinese restaurant ribs aspire to be.

“foie gras ganache!! carob, ceylon cinnamon, tamarind gastrique, almond, puffed rice.” These were more a dessert than a savory. The creamy foie texture and richness leant them the character of some kind of ultra rich mousse.

“garlic pork belly do ban jian, rice cakes, cabbage, garlic chives.” Probably my favorite dish. This had some good heat and that rich fermented bean paste flavor. The meat was rich, but not too fatty, and under the sauce you could only tell it from the rice cakes by texture. They added a chewiness to complement the some pork.

“dandan noodles!! kurobuta pork, sesame, preserved mustard greens, sichuan peppercorns, peanuts.” I really liked this too. Noodles with a pretty spicy Chinese pork ragu. I had a better version in western China, but this was pretty damn good. Decently hot, but not nearly real Szechuan hot. I guess the sauce isn’t so different than Pocked Marked Old Ladies Tofu (yes, that is a real dish).

Dessert is “free” (as Matt Groning said, “at no additional perceivable cost”). They bring out one per person, but three types. I would’ve liked to try each, but I had the leftmost, which was a delicious form of deconstructed pina colada. Some kind of pana cotta with coconut and pineapple. The middle was chocolate, the rightmost more fruity.

Manpuku is a Yakinaku (Japanese style Korean BBQ) joint in the heart of the Sawtelle little-Tokyo area (just a few stores down from awesome Kiriko Sushi). It’s been a lunch favorite of mine for years because it offers really good BBQ at value prices. It isn’t the ultimate Yakinaku, a title reserved for the amazing Totoraku, but it is about 10% of the price!

Every table comes equipped with it’s own BBQ. I apologize for the mediocre pictures. My snapshot camera is in the shop and so I had only the iPhone4 (I wasn’t going to lug the big camera). On the plus side, the photos did magically sync to my Mac via photostream, which is pretty sexy. Canon needs to add at least Wifi to their regular cameras. I’m sick of pulling out that card.

The lunch menu.

Kimchee on the left, the delicious sweet sauce (for use on the meat after cooking) on the right.

I ordered the “prime rib lunch set” ($15, and sometimes on sale!) and it comes with all you can eat Japanese salad.

Plus one of these plates of marinated prime short rib and a few vegetables.

The meal is simple. You BBQ to taste (rare in my case), dip in the sweet sauce, let cool on the rice, then eat!

There is nothing to complain about here. The beef is fresh, tender, and tasty. If you enjoy this, and are want to really max out on the variety this cuisine offers (every cut of cow) then check out Totoraku.

America is full of steak houses at every level from Sizzler to Cut. But I haven’t found one that I like as much as Mastro’s. Granted I’m not a plain steak fan (I prefer my beef more like this, or tartar, or even Fogo). But Mastro’s gets the steak house think right.

The Cannon drive entrance, just a block north of Spago. Inside the place is a ZOO. Sure this was Saturday, 8:30pm on Emmy weekend in Beverly Hills. But this huge restaurant was packed to the gills, including both bars. These are a sure scene. It’s hard to tell the merely underdressed and over siliconed ladies from the pros.

Our table was right in front of the rat pack. It was much more crowded than in this photo.

We were celebrating the engagement of one of my oldest friends so I brought some big guns from my cellar. This wine was the first truly GREAT wine I ever bought (circa 1996). This is the second to last of two cases I once had. It has constantly and without fail scored 100 points from Robert Parker. You will find no better expression of Syrah.

“The 1991 Hermitage La Pavillon follows the pattern of the 1989 and 1990 – it is another perfect wine. The saturated black/purple color is followed by a compelling bouquet of spices, roasted meats, and black and red fruits. Enormously concentrated yet with brilliant focus and delineation to its awesomely-endowed personality, this extraordinary wine should age effortlessly for three plus decades. In a short period of time (Michel’s first vintage was 1989) Chapoutier‘s Hermitage Le Pavillon has become a wine of mythical proportions. Produced from extremely old vines, some dating from the mid nineteenth century, with yields averaging under 15 hectoliters per hectare, this is the richest, most concentrated and profound wine made in Hermitage. There are rarely more than 500 cases.”

Everything at Mastro’s is well done, and that includes the bread. I’m partial to the pretzel rolls myself.

Five of us ordered the seafood tower. The quality of the seafood here is impeccable and the only thing we had to complain about was that there wasn’t enough! Really for five we would have expected the two or three story version Still there were amazing shrimp, lobsters, claws, king crab (didn’t taste frozen), and oysters.

One of the things that really makes the Mastro’s seafood tower are the sauces. We have cocktail, a spicy mustard, and the Atomic Horseradish. They use this particular magic brand (you can buy it here). The stuff is — pardon my French — fucking awesomely potent. I’ve taken to buying it myself for home. No other horseradish is this punishing. It has a nice flavor too. I particularly like it mixed in with the cocktail sauce. It can have you literally pounding the table in pain — ahem pleasure.

Beefsteak tomato and mozzarella. With pesto.

Since both I and my newly engaged friend were born in 1970, I grabbed from the cellar this puppy. Parker gives it a mere 95 points. Sure it isn’t quite the 1991 Le Pavillion, but it gets extra credit for age. “The 1970 Palmer is one of the great wines of the vintage. It exhibits a dark, opaque garnet color, and an emerging, fabulously complex, exotic nose of licorice, over-ripe plums and blackcurrants, soy, cedar, and minerals. Rich and concentrated, with medium to full body, a sweet inner-core of fruit, firm but silky tannin, and a long, rich finish, this remains a youthful, potentially superb Palmer. While approachable, it will keep through the first 10-15 years of the next century.

Here comes the beef!

Like most steak houses Mastro’s serves up the entrees bare (all the better to extract more cash from you). This is the New York Strip.

The bone in filet (12 ounce). This is my favorite cut of steak. It has both the filet tenderness and some extra flavor from the bone.

The straight petite (8 ounce) filet.

And the bone in filet, oscar style. Yes this was mine. Like King Robert, I’m trying to eat and drink my way to an early grave. “Oscar Style” means that it’s topped with asparagus, crab cakes and bearnaise sauce. Bearnaise sauce (French: Sauce béarnaise) is a sauce of clarified butter and egg yolks flavored with tarragon and shallots, with chervil and tarragon simmered in vinegar to make a reduction. Lean and mean baby!

In case you don’t get the idea, you have to see it up close. Oh so good.

Then the light “lobster mashers.” That orange stuff, that’s butter.

And for those not seeking an instant heart attack, the “sauteed spinach” (cooked in butter).

We continue to suffer on the wine front as well with this third gem from my cellar. Parker 96 points. “The 2008 Flor de Pingus offers up an enticing nose of smoke, Asian spices, incense, espresso, black cherry, and blackberry. On the palate it displays outstanding volume, intensity, and balance. Rich, dense, and succulent, it has enough structure to evolve for 4-5 years and will offer prime drinking from 2015 to 2028.”

So now we get to the desserts. This is “Mastro’s signature warm butter cake ala mode.” Basically a pound cake with an extra four sticks of butter or something. It’s really sweet and really good. Goes well with the magic whipped cream (see below).

Because of the incredible whipped cream here, we ordered up some fresh strawberries. Combine with below.

The photo is a little blown out, but Mastro’s has the most incredible whipped cream. You can just chow down on it my itself. Made fresh with really good cream and LOTS of sugar.

I couldn’t resist their key lime pie either. I LOVE key lime pie and they make a real good one. Plus it goes really well with the whipped cream.

Overall Mastro’s, while a zoo, and very expensive, is a spectacular steak house experience. You can really feel your heart palpitating as you roll out of here!

Just fifteen minutes from our villa and Siena lies the city of Colle di Val d’Elsa and its two star rated Michelin restaurant, Arnolfo. So we went twice! This is an amazing restaurant in a gorgeous location atop the old city. The rub, however, is getting there. The first time the GPS insisted we drive into a masonry wall (closed road). We gave up with that, parked, and ended up walking over a mile, including taking the elevator up to the old city. The walk back wasn’t no fun either and the staff told us that to actually drive here you have to go 6km out of your way to the next town and then come back by one particular approach — but then there is no parking in the old city.

So the next time, feeling all smart, I tried to park in the “close” (only 500m) lot below the old city. But the first entrance I tried was so narrow that I almost got stuck and had to back up my 9 seater van down 200m of alley and around a 90 degree turn — only took 30 minutes and soaked through my suit in the 88 degree humid weather. Then we had to hike up the half mile.

But it was worth it.

They have a gorgeous patio which far from “being in the middle of a city” looks out on the Tuscan hillside.

Even the non-view direction is lovely.

Grissini, first of several bread courses.

The menu on June 16 (the last of the “spring menu”).

And the new “summer” menu on June 23, as we luckily straddled the change.

Compari and soda.

Stating with a little prosecco to cool off.

In the glass.

Then comes a tray of amuses. From left to right. Green pea mouse, tomato stuffed with mozzarella, apple disc with prawn, veal croquet, and gorgonzola and fig jam sandwich. These were all good, but the last was incredible.

Like most great restaurants Arnolfo caters to every restriction. This is a variant amuse plate for vegetarians.

For example this beet and goat cheese mini.

Bread course number two, tomato bread and with lardo (sliver of pig fat).

And for those not so into the pig, the one on the right is onion.

Nor are the gluten free left out. Various potato and rice triscuits!

I’ve come to like Vernaccia, which is a D.O.C. white from San Gimignano. Very light, but with more flavor than a Pinot Grigio.

“Scampi, Goose Liver Escalope, Strawberries.”

“Sea Bass, Strawberries.” A variant for the shellfish impaired.

My notes failed me a little here, but I think it’s some kind of fish (possibly a pork belly though) in a pea soup.

Heads up, bread course three!

“Red mullets, Peas, Silver skin Onions.”

“Asparagus, Ricotta Cheese, Eggs.” Now this was an interesting dish. The white asparagus were grilled and wrapped in pancetta (bacon). The white and yellow stuff is deconstructed egg (yolk and white as powder). The ricotta is in the upper right and was delicious. The powder wasn’t as successful as the bonus egg, shown below.

This is more or less a coddled egg. I dipped the asparagus for extra umph.

This was a small production local Chianti Classico that the sommeler recommended. Good too, and like 30E. Try to find a decent wine at that price at a French 2 star!

“Guinea-Fowl, Chick-peas, I.G.P. Tuscan Ham.” Good stuff.

“Spinach soup with sea bass, tomato.”

“Perlina Aubergines, Tomato, Watermelon, Buffalo Mozzarella I.G.P.”

“Prawns, Peaches, Yellow Pepper.” Yummy. The pairing of the delicate shellfish was delicious with both the fruit and the peppers.

Arnolfo has very nice presentation, which I couldn’t photo every aspect of.

“Goose Liver, Red Onions, Spices, Cherries.” Oh wow yum. And that is some kind of cheese foam/ice cream on top. This was really good stuff.

And two extra goose liver preps for good measure. A sort of Napoleon and a little pistachio coated truffle, solid fois inside.

“Tortelli with chicken from Val d’Orcia, with asparagus and red pepper soup.” These are serious homemade pastas.

“Tortelli, Red Onions from Certaldo, White Beans from Sorana.”

“Mezzelune pasta, Courgettes flowers, Wedge shells.”

“Tagliolini, Rabbit, Black Olives.” In the front, out of focus, are discs of rabbit meat to go with the chunks of bunny in the pasta.

“Ravioli, Aubergines, Ewe’s Ricotta, Red Pepper.”

Gluten free pasta too!

“The 2006 Badia a Passignano Chianti Classico Riserva is a pretty, juicy red laced with cherries, dried flowers, tobacco and underbrush. The tannins dry out a touch on the finish, which is the only thing that keeps the score from going higher. Still, this forward, fruit-driven Chianti should drink nicely over the next few years. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2016. “

“Cod, with onions.” And some other stuff.

“Fish soup, Crustaceans, Mollucs, Vegetables.”

“John Dory, Asparagus, Datterini Tomatoes, Capers from Pantelleria.”

“Dentex, Gazpacho, Aubergines.”

“Swordfish, Roasted Peppers, Candied Tomatoes.” You can see that each dish is quite complex.

A brunello recommended by the sommelier.

“I.G.P. Chianina Veal Steak and cheek.”

“I.G.P. Chianina Veal Tartar and vegetables.”

I didn’t used to be into tartar, but it’s really been growing on me over the last several years. Quail egg on top.

This town evidently produces 14% of the world’s crystal. Italian shopping hours being what they are, despite three visits, we never saw one open.

Ah the suffering involved in dining in one of the world’s great wine regions. 93 points from Parker. “Consulting oenologist Carlo Ferrini has turned out a beautiful wine at this historic estate, a property which he speaks of in effusive terms. Talenti’s sublime 2001 Brunello Pian di Conte exhibits a deep, translucent ruby color. It opens with captivating, vibrant aromatics, with notes of freshly cut roses, raspberries and licorice. Gorgeously expressive yet delicate on the palate, it offers layers of dark fruit, earthiness and sweet oak supported by a refined, classic structure, with exceptional length and fine, silky tannins on the fresh finish. It is a superb effort. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2021.”

We are assaulted by a battery of pre-desserts. Vanilla ice cream with cherry rhubarb “soup.”

Our second meal here was slightly better than the first for some reason, but both were top notch. Service was spectacular all around. Highly recommended as a very updated medium modernist take on Tuscan cuisine. The quality of local ingredients was impeccable, and they know how to modernize playfully without letting the techniques get out of control.

This local resteraunt in the cute little walled town of Monteriggioni pretty much typifies Tuscan cooking at its traditional best. We initially went here on the basis of our villa owner’s recommendation. He has good taste, and we came back a second time. This is probably the best of all my reports to get a sense of the classic Tuscan courses.

The restaurant is located in the main square of this qaint medeval village.

The name seems to mean well, shaft, or pit. There is an old well in the square right outside the restaurant, so that’s probably it.

Fried fresh zucchini blossoms. Unlike in the states, these had no ricotta inside (which does frankly improve them), but they were still really good.

A good local Chianti Classico Riserva. It’s hard to really go wrong with some of these riservas at the local prices.

Grilled fillet of Tuscan cow. Rare (always)!

Guinea fowl braised and served in a sauce with slices of fresh truffle. No hating this.

Pork Senese, in a sweetish Vin Santo and fennel sauce. I liked this sauce which complemented the pork perfectly.

A total Tuscan classic, Salsicce con Fagioli — franks and beans. Tuscan sausage with stewed fava beans (a favorite of Hannibal Lector, but he uses the other other white meat).

Grilled lamb chops. Tuscans do love their Griglia (grilled meats).

Plenty of aperitifs available to wash down those slices of animal flesh.

The dessert menu.

Vanilla Gelato with hardened chocolate shell.

Creme Caramel. One of my personal favorites.

Tiramisu.

Cheese cake, Tuscan style.

You can really see the rhythm of a Tuscan meal here. The only things missing are the bruschetta and the minestrone, but those are shown in lots of other reports like Trattoria Pepei. First with have the antipasta, in this case cured meats, fish, etc. Then the pastas, then salads and vegetables accompanying grilled meats, followed by the cake-like desserts.

Today we drove through the mountains between Forli in Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany, then down past Florence to Staggia a small town near Siena. As this was a transitional day and we were settling into our new (temporary) home we just popped down into town for a quick local dinner.

This joint is in the center of this one horse town.

It has a big menu of typical Tuscan fare and very reasonable prices.

This being the heart of Chianti we chose a local Chianti Classico. This was probably about an 89 point wine, but it had some decent age on it making it fairly nice.

It was old enough that they decanted it.

In this modern age, the old adage, “don’t order seafood in the country,” no longer applies. This was billed as Zuppe di Mare. There wasn’t a lot of “soup” but it was tasty with a hearty garlic tomato sauce and various and mysterious shellfish.

And another Tuscan classic, the block of beef. This is a fillet in balsamic sauce.

Notice how it’s served rare. Really rare. Tuscans don’t believe in cooking their beef. It was tasty though. Leaner and a bit tougher than an American filet, but full of flavor.

Overall the place was very good for just being a casual inexpensive local spot. We did however run an odd service quirk when they brought out a second steak a full hour after everyone else got their food (they had forgotten the order). Unlike in America they didn’t want to pull it from the bill (although it was only about 10 euro) and instead insisted on boxing it up for us.

Then we walked across the street for gelato. The place was humming at 11pm, packed with kids.

The didn’t have a lot of flavors, but they are all artisanal and very good.

There has been real growth in the gastropub catagory here in LA during the last few years. Part of this is probably the recession which has encouraged somewhat lower key dining, but there’s probably more to it. When I first moved to LA (early 90s) things were dominated by flashy higher end “event” restaurants each with its own blend of novel fusion cuisine. Good examples of this would by Chaya, Matsuhisa, Chinois, Spago, Abiquiu. The next wave after that were the farmer’s market driven joints like Josie or Gjelina. In any case, on to Waterloo & City.

A view of the bar. This is a pretty big place.

The menu.
The drink menu. I didn’t feel like wine, so we tried out some of these.

“Tamarindo Fever. Tequila Blaco, Tamarind, Grand Marnier, Habanero, Lemon, Lime Salt.” I’ve been trying a lot of these “hot drinks” lately. I like them. This was good, sour and hot at the same time. But it was really hot. Not enough to bother me, but enough that I worried about heartburn if I drink say, 2 or 3 of them.

This special cocktail had vanilla Stoli, fresh lemon juice and some other stuff. It tasted like a lemon candy.

Bread.

Waterloo has a lot of charcuterie. This was a small plate on the left, on the right are “Shrimp & Zucchini Blossom Fritters, piri piri hot sauce.” A tempura fried variant on the Italian favorite (in that case usually stuffed with ricotta).

“Yellowtail crudo, shallot & ginger dressing, spring salad.” This was very tasty. Besides the fish there was a bit of burrata and tomato in here too. But the fish was very succulent, and the ginger based dressing delicious. With all this stuff, including the radish, there was a very complex but harmonious flavor/texture thing going on, not unlike a dish at Red Medicine.

“Steamed mussels, red thai curry, lime ginger, ciabatta.” A very nice adaption of the french classic.

“Hand-cut pasta, English Peas, Italian Sausage, Parmesan.” Even though it was two nights in a row I couldn’t resist this dish, as it is close to one of my favorite pasta types. Yesterday’s version was a little better, but this was very nice. The sausage was flavorful and after chopping it up a bit so some could get in each bit made an excellent foil to the buttery sauce.

“Wild mushroom pizza, smoked mozzerella, truffle oil.” If I didn’t know better I’d have said that this was a bacon and mushroom pizza! It was really good. First of all, the crust was thin and chewy, but not over burned. The cheese was gooey, and the smoked mushrooms really really meaty. Good stuff, I should have tried their Chicken Tikka Masala Pizza, as they stole my idea!

“Beef Wellington.” Sweet and sour onions on top of a puff pastry, sitting on bacon wrapped asparagus.

Inside is the medium steak (could have been a bit rarer), fois gras, and maybe some more bacon/pancetta. Certainly rich…

“Crispy confit pork shank, spring potato, bacon salad, peas & favas.”

Look at this sucker! Confit (twice cooked in it’s own fat)! Then deep fried! It was just a ball of piggy goodness.

The dessert menu.

Special. Glazed beneits with creme anglais and raspberry jam. These were REALLY sweet, coated in a bit of carmel I think too (you can see it pooling beneath). Very much to my taste, but not for those that don’t have a MASSIVE sweet-tooth.

Overall I was very impressed with Waterloo & City. Things were extremely tasty, and there was a lot of stuff on the menu that I wanted to try but couldn’t. I’ll have to head back. It’s, however, not a light cuisine. Which is perhaps why it suited my taste.

We go to Josie’s a couple times a year. The menu is pretty solidly in the mid 90s New American, and it doesn’t evolve very much, but it is very good and quality control is excellent. There is an emphasis of farmer’s market ingredients and interesting game meats too.

The bread.

Parker 92. “Bachelet’s 2005 Gevrey-ChambertinVieilles Vignes – from 60- to 70-year-old vines both below the route nationale and north of Gevrey in Brochon – offers lovely black fruit aromas with hints of anise and mint. A truly palate-staining intensity of vividly-fresh, tart but ripe black cherry and blackberry is underlain by firm, fine tannins (not precluding an emerging silkiness of texture) and augmented by bitter-herbal and stony notes. Although palpably dense and abundantly tannic, this outstanding village wine still comes off as juicy, sleek, invigorating and refined. Put it away for at least 5-7 years.”

I have been coming here since at least 1997 or 1998 and the Amuse, this gruyere and mushroom quiche never changes. Now it’s tasty, but I do find it odd that they NEVER mix anything up :-).

This was a special. White asparagus (just come into season), gnochi, all in a butter sauce with a bit of cheese. The sauce is much like the classic Italian butter and sage sauce.

A special, mushrooms in a sherry cream sauce with a puff pastry. I love those sherry cream sauces, like bisque with even more butter.

This small but excellent Bordeaux was also from my cellars. “Grand Mayne is one of St.-Emilion’s best-run properties. Aside from a couple of hiccups in the early nineties, the quality has been consistently excellent, often outstanding. The 1996 Grand Mayne exhibits a dense purple color, and an attractive nose of white flowers, sweet blackberries, cherries, minerals, and pain grille. It is medium to full-bodied, with excellent depth, an elegant personality, and a clean, mineral-like finish with moderate tannin. New oak is noticeable in the flavors. Anticipated maturity: 2003-2014.”

This was a split (half bottle) and the restaurant even had a mini decanter!

The mains.

Another special, salmon with spring peas, tomatoes, etc. A very nice seasonal take on the salmon, cooked perfectly through.

Trout in lemon butter sauce with local market vegetables.

And another special, a duck leg stuffed with duck confit, little gnocchi, and a meaty reduction sauce. This was a really nice duck dish.

“‘Tagine’ of Beef Short Ribs. Braised Moroccan-style and served with curried cous cous and a side of spicy almond yogurt.” I’ve probably ordered this dish 15-20 times, and it never disappoints.

The little cracker.

And the almond yoghurt underneath.

Notice how much I left of it. I love the mix in this dish. The savory richness of the meat, the soft cous cous, the bit of cream and yoghurt (always good with a heavy meat), the slightly spiced (but not spicy flavor). Yum!

The desserts.

“Chocolate Bread Pudding. Whipped cream, vanilla bean ice cream, chocolate sauce.” About as good as a bread pudding gets. Very similar in fact to the one at Sam’s by the Beach. This one is even more chocolaty though.

Super yum!

Josie’s doesn’t disappoint. It does mystify me slightly why there is so little change in the menu, considering particularly that the quality is so high. I mean, the supplementary vegetables move around with the seasonal and market changes, but the basic list of dishes doesn’t vary much, and I’ve been coming here well over ten years. Personally, if I was in the kitchen everyday I’d be bored. However, seeing as I come 2-3 times a year, I’m all over it.